


A Funny Thing

by Tsukiakari



Category: One Piece
Genre: F/M, Romance, Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-03
Updated: 2020-04-03
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:47:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 23,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23458810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tsukiakari/pseuds/Tsukiakari
Summary: So the mysterious Nico Robin has missed dinner once again, which typically is nothing out of the ordinary. However, what happens once she is personally brought her own plate is certainly anything but the usual.
Relationships: Nico Robin & Vinsmoke Sanji, Nico Robin/Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

> This is a (very) old (like over 10 years) RP log turned fanfic. Basically, all Sanji's parts (save for the very end and a few words here and there in the middle bits) are courtesy of my writing partner [if you recognize yourself, do give me a shout, Robert / zaion318 , it's been a while!]. It's not doing anyone any good just collecting dust on my computer :) It's set not long after she first joins the Mugiwaras.

* * *

"Robin-chwan?" Sanji straightened his tie and knocked on her door. He was one of the few who granted the women on their ship their wanted space, but then again, he was also the one who pestered them relentlessly with showers of love and affection. "I made something for you~"

She looked up momentarily from her book, glancing at the clock.

"Damnit..." she cursed under her breath. She had missed dinner yet again, because she couldn't tear herself away from one of her many, many books. Again. "You can come in..."

Taking advantage of the green light, Sanji waltzed inside of her room with a little pep in his step so to speak, and with as much grace his skinny, lanky form provided, he played the part of a waiter and set her dinner on the nightstand, grinning wide. "Dinner is served, Robin-chwan," he said proudly, extending his arm to show off his latest dish. "Baked salmon with fresh tomatoes, onions, steamed rice and a special healthy drink only for my _love~_!"

Of course, he'd taken the extra time to arrange her food into some artistic display. No one ever questioned how or why, but Sanji displayed his food in perfect symmetry in the shape of a heart. He sighed longingly and stood there, awaiting compliments for the chef if she had any to offer.

She only blinked at the artistic display of food before her. It seemed his designs became more extravagant every time she saw them.

"It looks… my God, that looks _amazing,_ but..." she bit her lip as she stopped herself. Granted, her stomach was about to cave in from the sheer hunger, but she still felt terrible for having him prepare extra whenever she missed dinner. It wasn't exactly fair. "I shouldn't. I hate that you have to do this so often..."

His face filled with disappointment as her voice trailed off, and Sanji put his hands up, trying to assure her that it was just fine. After all, Sanji didn't mind making extra for Robin or Nami. Had she been Luffy, Zoro or Usopp, this would be an entirely different story. "Robin-chwan, please," he insisted, smiling at her. "It would be a deep, deep insult to the chef if you didn't eat his food."

With a suave little smirk, he turned around and rummaged through a small drawer, pulled out a small, table candle, and set it on the nightstand with her food. He lit it with his cigarette. "Besides, I'd hate to have this food go to waste. All I ask if that you close your book and enjoy a dinner with me Robin-chwan; it's a pleasure to cook for such a beauty."

She bit her lip, pondering. She looked at Sanji, then at the food, and then back at him. She sighed and a smile crept onto her lips. She had never quite been able to say no to him.

"All right, you win." Well, that, and she was starving. She got up, and pulled out two chairs, sat in one, and motioned toward the other. "Have a seat, Cook-san." As she did so, she took the plate of food and placed it in her lap. She bloomed an arm from the side of her chair, and held the plate chest-height.

He grinned wide when he realized she accepted his proposal and gladly sat down in the offered chair and fished out a lollipop. He'd been trying to cut down on the amount of cigarettes he went through a day, only for the sake of getting a little breathless the last time he pranced around, trying to show up that shitty swordsman.

"Well?" He unwrapped his lollipop with his quick and nimble fingers, then leaned in, grinning like a fool, "How's the food, Robin-chwan? "

She smiled, taking a polite bite of the salmon. Upon doing so, her eyes widened a bit, in somewhat of a shock as to how _good_ it was.

"Cook-san, this is… _incredible_." She took another forkful, though a bit less "politely" this time. She then looked over at him upon finishing. "You never cease to amaze me with your delectable cooking," she added with a warm smile.

Sanji smiled proudly and puffed his chest out. A bit egotistical on his part, but he was Sanji, of course, and he couldn't help but have his pride swell whenever Robin or Nami complimented his cooking. This part of life was what he lived for-a good word from the girls made him feel more appreciated around this ship, more than any praise Luffy, Zoro, Chopper or Usopp could offer.

"Ah, Robin-chwan," Sanji said, waving a hand as if it were nothing. And really, it was nothing for someone like Sanji to cook for someone like her. Although a lot of effort went into cooking, he always looked at it as a hobby, not a chore. Sanji grinned, "It's my pleasure~"

She smiled, taking a few more bites. Sanji was actually the only person besides Nami she ever let in her room. In all honesty, he was actually one of her favorite members of the crew, simply because he respected the space that she thought she needed. But of course, this was Robin, and she would never let _him_ know that.

"So tell me, Cook-san... Why are you up so late?"

Sanji, being so open with his affections (unlike Robin), sighed dreamily and cradled his head in his hand. "Keeping you company," he confessed. "Since Moss head's on watch right now-Luffy's asleep, so's Chopper and Usopp and Nami-swan went to bed after a midnight snack~"

He shrugged a shoulder. "I figured since you didn't come to dinner, you'd probably still be awake even after the others went off...so I made you something, and thought you could use a little company..." So far, he'd done a respectable job of keeping himself in check. After all, it was Robin-chwan, and he could always keep himself in a...calmer state around her. He paused, offering her a wide, boyish smile. "Must be a really good book to keep _you_ up so late, Robin-chwan."

Her smile broadened as she recalled the fantastic book she had been reading. Her countenance seemed to glow, even.

"Let me show it to you." She placed her plate on the nightstand and rose to find the book she had hurriedly stuffed underneath her pillow. "It's about a clan of people who used to live on Ohara, where I come from, hundreds of years ago…" She pulled out a very old, tattered book. The edges were frayed, the pages were stiff, and the spine was torn. Yet she held it as if it were made of solid gold. "I'm in the midst of translating it. The culture and customs… It's all remarkable…"

Sanji turned the chair around as she got the book and straddled it, his arms crossed over the backside as he leaned against it. He nodded and listened to her explain intently, a small smirk tugging at his lips. "Ohara, eh?" Sanji asked, sitting up. It amazed him how something like that book could make her light up like she did when he asked her what she'd been reading. She got so excited showing him, Sanji wished he could show her something that would invoke a fraction of the happiness he had just seen on her face.

Her smile, how she talked, her reaction. All of it made Sanji's smirk evolve into a fool's grin as he stared up at her, left in awe. He only wished he could have half of the interest she had in that book, he only wished his cooking could make her smile like that.

"Ah, Robin-chwan..." Sanji said, sighing as he put his hands up. "How could I ever call you to dinner and pull you away from your books when they make you so happy?" He leaned back on his chair, buried his face in his arms, and chuckled lightly.

She bit her lip, feeling a twinge of guilt, though she had no idea why.

"Nonsense." She placed the book softly on her bed and devoted her attention back to him. "This... this is no reason for me to miss your excellent cooking," she said, glancing at the book. "And besides, no matter how fantastic of a book I may be buried in… I must admit that the company is infinitely better when I'm not barricaded in my quarters alone." She pulled out her chair and slid in front of him, hoping she wouldn't seem so far away, like she was always told she did. "In any case, there are things that books can't provide..." she began, slightly hesitant. "Excellent food, for one. And... company, as well..."

A smiled played faintly on her lips.

He raised his curly brow a fraction in surprise. Sanji wondered idly if he was really sleeping in his hammock, legs dangling and arm spilled over the side, as he dreamt that Robin said this to him. It wouldn't be the first time he'd had a dream like that...

He considered pinching himself, but everything seemed real enough to stop himself from trying that out.

Sanji was all little-boy smiles. Sometimes Robin made him wonder if she really did prefer reading and solitude over breakfast, lunch or dinner and the obnoxious symphony of whines and shouts that accented it (usually Luffy, sometimes an outraged Zoro or even him, adding to the fight). But he was relieved to hear that she didn't.

"That's good..." Sanji said, tipping his chair forward with a little push from his heels. He balanced himself carefully with his feet, and grinned. "Company, eh?" He leaned a little closer in anticipation of her answer, "That's me, right?" _Just me?_

She only smiled pleasantly, resting her chin in the palm of her hand, thinking she might delay her answer for a bit, and appearing as though she had completely disregarded the question.

"Would you like to know how I learned that lesson?"

Sanji didn't make an effort to hide his disappointment, but he nodded nonetheless and shrugged his shoulder. "How'd you learn that lesson?"

Still, she kept him on his toes. Figuratively and literally, as he balanced his chair carefully.

She smiled at her tottering crewmate, promising herself she would try not to drag this on.

"Believe it or not, I used to be much more reserved than I am now. For some reason, I had this… crazy idea in my head that… if I read and learned more than I could ever possibly need to know, my mother would come back to me. I thought I didn't need friends or companionship, or anything of the sort. They were nothing more than a hindrance. It wasn't until Luffy saved my life when I wanted to die that I realized there are more… important things than books."

At this, she peered into his eyes, smiling warmly, trying to get into the habit of doing so more often.

It startled him to know that Robin was telling him all of this. Of course, he made his own conclusions about her: that she was a quiet woman who liked to keep to herself. And he went about, doing his best to respect that (and forcefully getting the other male occupants of the ship to respect that as well).

So it was no surprise that this _came_ as a surprise that she was having this conversation with him in the first place. It made Sanji feel strangely...proud, in a way. She could be talking to anyone right now, but it was him.

He stared back at her, smile for smile. "Nakama," Sanji said quietly.

She sighed, almost with a tone of... relief. That was quite a lot to get off her chest, and in a way she couldn't quite figure out, she was glad she had done so with Sanji.

"Precisely." She smiled, tousling his hair. Contact which was... extremely rare, to say the least.

He was all smiles. "Nakama, Robin-chwan." Sanji said proudly, holding out his hand to her's. "That's what we are, thanks to Captain Luffy."

Though he didn't show a lot of respect for the Captain, to be honest, Sanji really was thankful to Luffy for a million different reasons. Robin was one of them. He'd been able to meet her.

If there was one thing about Luffy, she thought, it was that he was definitely talented at bringing out the best in people, herself included.

"I do believe you're right, Cook-san," she said, laughing a bit to herself. "He's a good kid."

"Yeah," Sanji agreed. "Luffy's... Luffy's something sometimes, he really is."

She then glanced quickly at the clock, then back at Sanji. "Well, I must've talked you to death by now. You'll probably want to get going. It's late, after all..." she said with a twinge of... reluctance in her tone.

The cook watched her eyes go up to the clock, then stared back at her when she suggested subtly that maybe it was time for him to go.

He looked disappointed. "Not at all, " Sanji said, dropping his chair down to all four legs. He got up, stretched his arms in front of him, and smiled brightly at her. This was all too delicate. He wanted to stay, he really did, but he didn't want to force himself on her. "I like talking with you, Robin-chwan." He leaned over her, grabbed the plates he'd brought to her, and winked. "If I'm bugging you, I'll go. Got dishes to do, anyway..."

She bit her lip. In all honesty, she hadn't really wanted for him to go, either, but it was near daybreak, and she didn't want to keep him up until morning, especially if she wasn't entirely sure if he wanted to go or stay.

"Well, I..." It took her a moment to register what he'd just said. "I enjoy talking with you very much, Cook-san." She opened her mouth, then closed it quickly. She really did hope the screaming going on inside her head would stop. "But I don't want to keep you here, honestly…"

"Well, Robin-chwan..." he started, shrugging a shoulder."I don't want to keep you awake, either." He leaned in close, cheek to cheek with her, then slowly turned his head, his nose brushing her skin. He paused there, lips just shy of her as if he'd kiss her goodnight on the cheek. Instead, Sanji found his eyes trailing down her neck, and he turned away, sighing slightly through his nose as he stood. "At least," Sanji said with the tray of dishes he'd brought in earlier in his hands. "You can say you didn't stay up all night reading. You spent it with me, eh? Goodnight, Robin-chwan."

She was quite sure she was blushing fervently as she felt his breath grace her cheek. She prayed that he couldn't hear her heart reverberating in her chest a mile a second. She tried to remember the last time anyone had gotten that close to her... Her vocal chords were completely frozen as she watched him make his way out.

He paused at the door, turned and smiled at her. "If you need me, I'm in the kitchen. Doing dishes." And with that, he left her, still a little dazed by the close contact he'd had with her.

"Absolutely," she said, with as much composure as she could muster. "Have a good night." She waited until she heard the quiet 'click' of the door shut until she spoke again; quietly, to herself. "Sanji."


	2. II

Sanji stood there, outside her door for a second, looking down at the tray of dishes.

He never planned on that. A simple kiss to the cheek goodnight never was supposed to turn into an intoxicating breath of... _her_. But he thought about it more and more, and found himself frowning. Robin probably thought he was more of a pervert than before. After all, he'd gained the nickname "Ero-cook" for a reason. He sighed in self disgust and reached one hand into his pocket, fished out a cigarette, and stuck it in the corner of his mouth, unlit.

Sanji took his time doing dishes, casting glances at the door every now and then when he heard a creak. But it was always the sea. He frowned and reached for a towel and dried his hands as he finished the rest of his cigarette, then stabbed it out in the ashtray by the sink. Sanji stepped out of the kitchen and crept across the deck for the men's quarters. Hopefully, no one realized he'd been missing from there most of the night. He wondered if Robin was asleep by now. She probably was. He stretched his arms over his head and yawned. He had to be up to start on breakfast soon, so he might as well sneak in a moment's rest while he could.

She collapsed, back first, onto her bed, arms spread out, staring at the ceiling. She took a breath. Technically she should be sound asleep right about now. But after . . . well, she wasn't entirely sure she'd ever be able to sleep again. She got up a few times, thinking she heard a faint tap at her door; though every time she opened it she was greeted with the same silence.

She was hallucinating, that was all.

No, there was absolutely no way Robin was going to be getting any sleep tonight. She kept thinking about his scent. And what his breath felt like. Warm... though not too heavy. It was so... _no_. No no no. This was Sanji she was talking about. He was just being... himself. Besides, what kind of interest could anyone have in _her_?

 _Don't kid yourself..._ she thought, squeezing her eyes shut. All she wanted to do was sleep. Well... on second thought, maybe sleep was a bad idea. Because sleep meant dreams. And she knew all too well what dreams meant.

His feet carried him back to her room.

Sanji couldn't bring himself to acknowledge why, though he knew. He stood just outside her door, forehead just short of touching it, and turned to look at Nami's room. She was asleep, he knew. But Robin?

He leaned closer and stilled, listening for any sign of restlessness. He didn't want to knock only to discover that she'd been asleep and he woke her. Sanji was still a gentleman, "Ero-cook" or not. Still, he watched as his hand raised, curled into a fist, and knocked softly, softly, soft enough not to wake. And his voice followed, a little dry, a little hoarse, a little anxious.

"Robin-chwan..." he called. "Are you still awake?"

She sat up, almost immediately. Was that...? She sighed. She must be hallucinating again...

She was about to lie back into bed when something stopped her. For some reason she decided to check the door one last time. And if it was nothing... well, then, she was truly insane. She got up, and walked over to the door, opening it slowly. She couldn't figure out if she was more scared that no one would be there, or more afraid that someone would.

"Cook-san," she said quietly upon seeing him in her doorway. She was definitely not expecting that. She blinked a few times, just to make sure it wasn't another hallucination.

That little-boy-ish smile came back and he reached up to rub at the back of his neck. Excuse. He searched in his head desperately for an excuse while the less logical side of him simply wanted to lean forward and...put some kind of connection there. He felt a spark between the two of them when he'd leaned in originally to kiss her goodnight and here he was, facing the aftershock of it all, not quite sure what to make of it.

"Maybe...eh..." Sanji leaned to the side, looking over her shoulder. "You've got some dishes I might've missed? Maybe..."

Like the feet that led him to her, like the hand that knocked on her door, his body moved on its own accord. "Maybe..." Sanji stepped close to her and closed the distance between them and bowed his head, lips by her neck. Maybe he shouldn't be doing this. Maybe there'd be a flurry of petals and he'd be on his back on the floor, writhing with a few broken bones here and there.

But he had to face those maybes. That spark was there, he wasn't imagining it, and he wanted to feel that again. "Maybe you felt it, too." Sanji said, closing his eyes as his arms raised, holding her against him by her shoulders. His lips pressed down on her skin in a kiss.

The moment she opened the door and saw him there, she had a feeling he wasn't just there to collect dishes.

She felt the warmth of his body closing in on her own, and she wasn't entirely sure what to do. Her hands must've had the same complex as Sanji's did, because she had somehow lost control over them. Somehow she lost control over herself, entirely. One of the few things about herself she valued with such fervor, her control. And it was gone, in a goddamned instant.

She began tracing her fingers nimbly over his back, and she noticed that the screaming in her head began to subside...

At first, he was certain she was going to push him away. The doubts began to settle when he was met with silence, but they vanished as soon as he felt Robin's hands on his back. Those were welcoming, he told himself.

He turned his head, his lips trailed up her neck and he paused at her ear, all the while slowly making his way into the room in an awkward little push and shuffle. His hands settled at her waist as he reached back with one leg and toed the door shut. "I was just...thinking about you. The whole time," Sanji confessed with a small frown. "The whole time." The love-sick, prancing fool was absent. The ongoing rambles and worldly metaphors of endless love were gone. All of it had been replaced with a genuine sincerity that Sanji didn't know how to handle, it seemed.

He licked his dry lips and pushed her hair away with the back of his hand, slow with every move, and touched his lips around the shell of her ear. He pulled back, nose brushing across her cheek. Sanji paused there, his lips just before hers, one hand still on her waist.

He felt as foolish as Zoro often said he was. So he stopped here, waiting for a reaction from her. Some kind of stop, some kind of go. Some kind of anything, really.

With every touch and breath she felt a tingling sensation from the top of her neck to the small of her back. Robin, who was always so calm, so collected, so... sure of herself, for once had the feeling (maybe it was nerves, maybe not…) of not knowing what in hell would come next. And strangely, she sort of liked it.

She traced a few fingers over his cheek and across his jaw line, feeling every crease and distinguishable feature she possibly could.

"I can't even tell you how many times I ran to the door, hoping you would be there," She laughed lightly at herself, slightly embarrassed. "Ridiculous, ne?"

Sanji laughed himself, filled with relief. He wasn't the only one, then, and that put him at ease. "Not as bad as me," he confessed, lying her down on her bed. "I thought I heard you coming to the kitchen. Every time, I'd stop. Took me forever to get through all of them." Sanji grinned as he crawled up on top of her, leaning on his elbows and on his knees.

He raised a hand and tucked her hair behind her ear affectionately, smirking to himself. "Went through a thousand and one cigarettes..." he said, leaning closer and closer to her lips. He'd yet to kiss her once tonight, and he wondered if that spark would be there, too.

"And then I was surprised," Sanji said, his eyes looking up to hers. "That you were still awake." He stole a kiss then, eyes closing as his hand reached for hers and locked their fingers together.

He was here tonight, that was what mattered. He didn't mind spending it in her arms and sleeping, he didn't mind doing whatever she pleased. He was still Sanji, and he was still as eager to please her as ever. The only difference was now, he found that interest in her deepened considerably and sincerely, and he was warming up to her, taking his thoughts more seriously. He pulled back, looking at her, armed with a lazy smile.

"What kept you awake?"

She sighed, so relieved that she was not in fact going insane. She had never felt as nervous as she did right that second, and she was so glad that he had said something.

"A thousand and one, huh?" She was surprised she could say much of anything, because that kiss, weakened her, almost. What did keep her awake? Dear God, she wished she knew. Well, being honest, she did. Somewhere in the dark recesses of her heart she knew. Whether or not she would acknowledge this and tell him remained to be seen. "I just... I couldn't sleep. My mind was a complete..." She bit her lip. Robin had never been too skilled with orally articulating her innermost feelings.

Sanji remained perfectly oblivious to whatever reason it was that kept her awake this entire time, and that suited him just fine. There was always a possibility that she simply didn't feel like telling him, and Sanji, being the gentleman that he prided himself in being, acknowledged that and took it without insult.

"It's okay," he told her, leaving a kiss at her forehead. "I'm here." He hoped that was some kind of assurance; Sanji didn't mean to sound full of himself, by any means. But he threw it out there for her to know. He was here, he cared, and he didn't want to leave her.

He was still testing the waters with her, wondering when and if Robin would ever sit up, shove him off and if he'd see floating petals in front of him before he felt a crack in his back. But Robin didn't give him any inclination that she'd do that, so the hand he had in her's slowly moved down, fingertips across her arm, over her chest, around her curves, down her flat stomach and pausing there at her pantline. Sanji kissed her again as his hand trailed lower, down to her thighs and up again, ghosting his touch.

"Yeah," he added. "A thousand and one cigarettes." Sanji grinned proudly. "And I didn't cough once."

His fingers curled and kneaded against her slowly, teasingly as he nudged her legs apart with his knee, all the while watching her expression, waiting for a flicker of objection. "Not once~" he repeated, "Have to buy another box of 'em when we dock again..."

Every touch of his was electric. She tried to remember the last time anyone touched her like that, the last time anyone made her feel as though her skin was on fire. She couldn't.

"I suppose I owe you then, don't I?" she said casually, attempting to mask the fact that her entire body was tingling as she watched his fingers, intrigued, mesmerized, for the first time being completely out of control and not really minding it. "Cigarettes don't come cheap these days," she added with a sly smile.

He couldn't stop himself from grinning. "Owe me?" Sanji chuckled, "Robin-chwan, you know I could never let you stay in my debt..." This was Sanji, of course. Spoiler of women. He couldn't let that happen, no matter how promising it sounded, to have Robin, who was beneath him and willing, to be in his debt.

He massaged her a little more, pressing against the cloth of her pants, then moved his fingers up when he felt he'd done enough, and started to slowly unbutton Robin's shirt, button by button. He spread his fingers over the smooth of her stomach when he pushed her shirt open and kissed her soundly, most of his weight on the one hand he had planted firmly beside her head.

The feeling of his fingertips tracing her bare skin was enough to drive her utterly mad. And the kiss... well, that was an entirely different story. Every kiss caught her soul a flame, and she returned them, as best as she could, trying to keep up, wishing the room would just be still...

She wanted to touch him. Everywhere. All at once. Though she did make an attempt to restrain herself, she wasn't exactly being too skilled with the endeavor at the moment... Her fingertips traced along his neck, touching his ears, entangling themselves in his hair.

Even as he kissed her, the corner of his lips quirked into a small, satisfied smirk. Sanji's hand crept around the small of her back and went up and fiddled with the clasp of her bra in vain. He groaned into her mouth in frustration, then finally, he got it to open, and pulled away just long enough to gather her upper body up in his arms, undress her, and then pull the shirt off from over his head. His lips found hers again, caught up in his own passion he'd created.

At one point, he'd wanted to tell her very clearly that he wanted to make love to her. But Sanji was past that by now, and most of everything he was thinking about moments ago were pushed to the back of his head to be considered at a later time. Lust, he found, was a powerful drug that took over him almost entirely.

Typically, her reflexes would've told her to beat him to a bloody pulp at that point. However, she found that she was... an entirely different person with him. She didn't feel as though she had to be on her guard from anything, not even from herself.

She sighed softly into his lips as she felt his skin touching her own. She still had that intense desire to touch him, and it wouldn't leave her. She moved her hands across his back, over his chest, around his neck, to every accessible place she could reach.

He closed his eyes and leaned into her touch, welcomed and warmed by her all around him. If that brief contact he'd shared with her earlier that night had been intoxicating, this was indescribable. Sanji was driven by his desires, and his body reacted accordingly.

Everything that happened came in blurs, pressed to memory only by sensation, and quite suddenly, Sanji found himself undressing himself and her without the slightest of difficulties. He kicked his pants off over the foot of the bed and his hands lifted her by her thighs, pulling her closer to him.

Sanji was over her, his lips at her neck as he slowly pushed himself inside of her, holding onto her gently by her shoulders, burying his face into her neck, her hair, letting out a shuddering sigh against her skin when he filled her.

She winced slightly, letting out a groan as she turned her head to the side. She then curled her toes, as if that would somehow slow the process of the impending cataclysm she felt inside her. She tried, briefly, to think, but Robin, with her ever-vigorous mind, found herself unable to think of anything at all except for him. Everything was him; the universe was him. As obvious a logical absurdity as that last statement was, that was what he had done to her.

He covered her in kisses across her shoulders, her cheek, fleeting, short over her lips and in her hair as he started a slow, steady rhythm with his hips, giving a low grunt every now and then when he couldn't constrain himself. He worked at this until he'd developed a thin sheet of glistening sweat over his back and picked up the pace, the entire bed groaning under their weight.

Just then, her eyes shot open, and she tightened the grip of her thighs. Her breathing became heavier, and she began to rake her fingers into his back. She pulled him in, closer to her, as if he wasn't already close enough... he could never be close enough. Just then, she locked eyes with him, and firmly decided that she needed more.

Dawn streaked in through the small window of Robin's room, but Sanji paid it no mind. He was lost in a sea of sensations, thinking only of Robin.

He groaned, his hand sliding down to her hips. Sanji thrust into her, thinking of her nails on his back, her legs around him, everything. He was suddenly overwhelmed by every slick sensation that he couldn't control himself anymore, and he gave her just what she wanted: _more_.

He released inside her in shuddering bursts with thrust after thrust, groaning and grunting, even gasping into her shoulder. Sanji's body gave a short tremble and he pulled his head back, sucked in a breath of air, and released it slowly. His chest heaved with every breath and he rolled onto his back, taking her with him, holding her in his arms, nailed with exhaustion.

In that moment, there was no crew, no boat, no sea, no world . . . nothing except just the two of them.

She felt something like an upsurge inside of her as she was being swallowed up by the magnitude of her own ecstasy, and once it swallowed her whole and spit her back out, she gathered enough strength to say one thing.

"Sanji..."

There was nothing else to say but his name. His real name. It encompassed every swirling emotion she had mixed up inside of her.

Sanji opened his sleepy eyes and looked down at her. He gave a weak little chuckle and reached up, his hand trembling, and threaded his fingers in her hair.

He shifted slowly, carefully, and touched his lips to her head, leaned back and turned his head to the side, resting against the pillow.

Breakfast be damned, crew be damned. So it was dawn. He couldn't do anything but sleep right now; it almost demanded it. His body felt like a weight, nothing but a heavy weight, and Robin's warmth and the promise of sleep were open arms to all he needed. He closed his eyes and gave into that need.

She wasn't exactly sure she wanted to sleep. Sure, she was about to pass out, but she was afraid, in honesty. She was afraid that if she fell asleep he wouldn't be there when she woke up. She was afraid that she would suddenly discover it had been a dream. A fantastically wonderful dream. A cruel joke of a dream because it hadn't been real.

She yawned, looking up at him. Apparently for him, sleep wasn't an issue. She moved a bit closer to him, carefully inching. Maybe... sleep wasn't such a bad idea... and if it had been a dream... well, she'd just go on with her life as she always did.

Slowly, reluctantly, her eyes began to close.


	3. III

Hours later, Sanji flung his arm out against a pillow, waking himself up. He mumbled here and there, something about "Mellorine," followed by a few whimpers, and slowly opened his eyes, frowning at the sunlight that was leaking into Robin's room through the porthole. Then he realized that's just where he was: in Robin's room, with a warmth in his arms. He cracked a smile and his body relaxed with a content sigh, his hands slipping around her, stroking at her back, coaxing her awake. "Robin-chwan..."

He wondered what time it was and suddenly frowned. Undoubtedly, if Luffy was awake, he was stalking the deck, looking for him and whining about breakfast. Maybe even Nami, Chopper, Usopp and Zoro were wondering where he was. Certainly, Robin's absence could be tolerated for the sake of it being so routine and expected, but Sanji... Sanji was always somewhere to be found. The dawning realization gripped at him, and he suddenly was overcome with the urge to leap out of bed, throw on his clothes, rush to the kitchen and get to work on some pancakes, eggs, toast and whatever else there was to make, but as he looked down at Robin, he was all easy-going smiles. He stretched his neck to the side, gave a bear-ish yawn, and smiled wide. "Robin-chwan..."

She moaned slightly, attempting to shift around, wondering when her bed had gotten so small...

Wait. Her bed hadn't gotten smaller. There was someone else in it. Someone warm and someone touching her. The hands were so soft that she almost went right back to sleep...

She opened one eye, then two, looking up at him. Over her lips came a languorous smile, her eyes still half-closed. She reached up, taking a finger and running it gently from the top of his forehead, over his nose, past his lips, to the stubble on his chin.

"Morning..."

He chuckled and grinned down at her, running his fingers through her hair. "Morning, Robin-chwan," he said, closing his eyes as he kissed her forehead.

All thoughts and any worry all disappeared now that she was awake. Everything in Sanji was geared toward making her happy, seeing her smile and pleasing her. It wasn't a new goal, by any means, but it was definitely fueled by the intimate love-making they'd went through last night. He always felt the elusive Nico Robin had him wrapped around her finger since he'd first laid eyes on her, but now, he wanted to go out of his way to do things for her.

He grinned lazily, feeling all too smug, too happy, too satisfied. "Sleep well?"

She smiled just as lazily, moving a little closer to him. So she hadn't been dreaming. It had actually happened. And she wasn't insane. All very good things.

Here he was, in her bed. Entirely unclothed. Smiling at her. Her brain began to go a mile a minute, trying to figure out _why_ all of this was happening to her, of all people. She promptly quieted her thoughts. She didn't need to her mind to be dizzy with nonsense. Not now.

Did she sleep well? Saying yes would be a gross understatement. She wanted to say so much... but she withheld herself. Yet again...

"Yes, actually... And yourself?"

His grin widened, pleased to hear it, and he chuckled as he stroked his hands up and down her back.

Sanji slept like a log, like a baby. There were too many metaphors he could throw out there to describe how great his night was. He sighed dreamily just to add to his answer, "Ah, Robin-chwan," Sanji said dramatically, if only to make her smile. "I've never slept so well..."

Her bed was a nice change to the hammock that was down there in the men's quarters, but in all honesty, it was more than that.

She sighed happily, arching her back a little every time his fingers neared the base of her spine. She wondered what would happen if they just stayed that way... Most likely Luffy would starve to death.

For a fleeting second she wondered if he would leap out of bed and leave her, like others had, all too often. Though she quickly pushed that aside. Not him. Not Sanji. He was different... She hoped.

"Wonderful, I'm so glad..."

And she really was. She only hoped she made him feel half as happy as he made her...

For someone like Sanji, who fell in love with every other woman he laid his eyes on, this was...a new experience. Being a pirate, being a notorious flirt, there were too many one night stands. It broke his heart to leave in the morning, it really did. Sanji was too much of an emotional guy, he'd admit, but this opened up an entirely new door to him.

Robin wasn't a girl in a town that they'd leave in a day or two, maybe less. She was a part of their crew, his nakama. More. He was suddenly so captivated by her and what she did. Her habits, how she moved, that arch in her back when he moved his hands the right way. She would be here, come tomorrow, come the next day and the next after that. And he wouldn't have to leave her.

Sanji felt like he was chiseling away at her, making progress on _knowing_ her. He didn't want to roll over and check the clock, to be honest. He dreaded seeing the time and he wanted to take today slow.

"So," he said, still with that lazy grin. "What'd you want for breakfast today, Robin-chwan?"

She smiled a bit slyly to herself. What did she want for breakfast... _You,_ is what she wanted to say. _And that will also do for lunch and dinner. Along with the possible midnight snack._ . . .

Though she didn't. She hated being so timid about such things…

"French toast," she began, stretching her arms a bit. "With bacon. _Thick_ strips of bacon... scrambled eggs... with cheese... pancakes, maple syrup... sausage, thick sausage... juicy, too... and mimosas..." She ran a hand over his chest, grinning mischievously.

He laughed, leaned in and planted kisses over her skin, pausing here and there to take a breath of her scent, sighing happily. "Yeah?" Sanji grinned,"Anything you want, Robin-chwan, you get," he said. "I'll make everything I have in that kitchen for you."

Suddenly, he pulled the covers over them, laughing, and proceeded to tickle her, his hands roaming her body, his lips over her skin. There was something playful about it, but sensual.

She attempted to stifle her giggling; she typically didn't . . . giggle. Though it was to no avail. Before long she was laughing, blushing a deep crimson. She began writhing in every possible direction, trying feebly to push his hands away, laughing all the while.

Sanji grinned and came to a slow stop, on his elbows on top of her. He leaned in, took a few fleeting kisses and smiled wide at her. "I'd better get started on breakfast. Luffy's gonna throw a fit if I don't."

With that said, he rolled off of her and out of the bed and sauntered to his pile of clothes. Boxers on, he started to button up his shirt, and stopped himself from palming out a cigarette he wanted. He usually started smoking when he started cooking the first meal of the day, but he was running late today.

"Thick strips of bacon, was it?" he said, "Scrambled eggs and cheese. Pancakes with maple syrup..." Sanji turned around and faced her, grinning wide, "And thick, juicy sausage."

She bit her lip, a bit disappointed. Well, she couldn't have expected him to stay there forever. He had to go, after all. She turned on her side, tucking her hands beneath her pillow, smiling as she watched him get dressed. "Don't forget the mimosas."

"Ah, right, mimosas..." Sanji nodded and pulled up his pants, reached for his belt, and slipped it on. He glanced into the mirror, finger brushed his hair, and stopped at her door before he left.

He went back to her, kissed her soundly, hand on her cheek, and pulled away grinning. "You expect breakfast in bed, maybe a little more?" Sanji walked backward to the door. "Wait on me. I'll be...a half hour, at the most."

He walked off to the kitchen, whistling with his hands in his pockets, and dodged a drooling Luffy, who was whining about breakfast as Sanji expected. After prying Luffy off (he demanded a piggy-back ride to the kitchen), he rolled up his sleeves and opened the door, apologizing for being late.

"I stayed watch," was his excuse.

He made everything Robin asked him to and set the table and placed out the food for the rest of the crew, then pulled out a tray for Robin. He arranged her breakfast with perfection, everything in perfect symmetry. Pleased with that, he headed back to her room after he stabbed out his morning cigarette and waltzed inside, grinning.

"Good morning, Robin-chwan~" he announced. "Breakfast in bed?"

At that point she was half dressed, sitting up in bed, waiting anxiously for him. She sat in her underwear, finishing up the last buttons on her blouse.

As the door opened, she looked up immediately, and her whole expression lit up. It took every fiber of her strength not to leap out of bed and tackle him. That must've been the longest half-hour of her life...

"Cook-san... that looks amazing...!"

If she thought last night's dinner was extravagant, this was an indescribable work of art. There was _so much_ food, she hardly thought she could finish it all. Honestly when she had given him that gargantuan list of food she hadn't expected him to make every bit of it.

He grinned proudly and crawled into bed next to her, all the while balancing the tray carefully. Sanji set it down before her with a boy-ish grin and nuzzled his head against her arm. "All in a day's work," he said.

Sanji flopped back, arms crossed over his chest, and took a well deserved sigh. "Enjoy "

She smiled down at him, then at her platter of food, wondering where to begin. It all looked so... _good_. She opted to kill two birds with one stone, and went for the pancakes as well as the sausage.

"It's fantastic," she said, smiling, upon swallowing her food. "You have to eat some; I'll never finish it all."  
And she was already poking him a forkful of food to eat.

Of course, the cook didn't make himself a plate to eat. He shrugged his shoulders and gave into her demands, opened his mouth and took a bite. He grinned cheekily.

" _Wow_. It really is fantastic. My compliments to the amazing chef who cooked this..."

She laughed, cutting herself a handsome slice of pancake. "So modest..." She stopped before eating her portion, however, a thought suddenly occurring to her. "They weren't upset, were they? About your being late for breakfast and all..."

He shrugged his shoulders. "Luffy was upset." Sanji said, grinning up at her. "Course he was fine after he shoved a few donuts down his throat. Usopp was curious, but I told him I took over the nightwatch." He nuzzled his head against her hip and closed his eyes. "Everyone cleared after breakfast was served."

She laughed, picturing the chaos that was the kitchen table.

"I thought as much. Luffy has something of a short fuse when it comes to food." She devoured her serving of pancake and went for the bacon next. "Try these pancakes, too. Come, sit up." She couldn't stop smiling. Even if she tried she just couldn't seem to stop. She was almost—dare she say it—giddy. Huh. Robin. Giddy. What kind of universe had she lost herself in?

He mumbled weakly in protest but Sanji was up and leaned back on his elbows. "Luffy has a short fuse when it comes to just about anything," he pointed out, grinning wide at her. "What about the pancakes? Are they good or something?" So it was an indirect way for the chef to fish for compliments, which he always liked to hear. "They can't be as good as the bacon, no way..."

She cut him a hefty slice, making sure it was positively dripping with maple syrup. "Yes, they're amazing, if that's what you wanted to know..." she said with a sly smile, beckoning him to open his mouth. "And we'll just have to see about the bacon."

He flashed her a smile before he took the bite, giving a satisfied sigh. "Mm," Sanji said mid-chew. "It tastes _heavenly_ ...whoever made these pancakes must be some pancake-making _expert_." He pointed to the tray, smacking his lips, obviously teasing with every move he made. "And the bacon..."

She took a slice, biting into about half of it. She chewed it, prolonging her analysis, obviously teasing him. She chewed it on one side of her mouth, then moved it to the other, shifting her eyes to the ceiling, before finally pausing dramatically.

"Hm... I would say... mediocre, at best." She smirked, raising an eyebrow tauntingly at him.

Sanji's jaw dropped. He regarded her with a look of utter disbelief for a second or two, then blinked.

After all of that biting patience, watching her chew, waiting for her to say something about his cooking (and expecting a damn good review), that was what he got? Oh, no, there had to be some mistake, Sanji thought. Definitely some mistake. Some ungodly mistake.

"Sorry, I must have misheard you," he said idly. "Did you say _mediocre?_ "

She took her fork and sort of... pushed her food around a bit. The expression on his face was absolutely priceless, and she was trying as hard as she could not to laugh.

"Oh, no. That's precisely what I said."

He watched her push around his food- _his food_ he worked very hard to make-with his jaw slack. Sanji swallowed, suddenly trying to appear very calm, very disinterested and very, very indifferent when in fact it was killing him on the inside.

"Well, if you're not going to eat this _mediocre_ food," Sanji said, "I can always just march out there, give it to Luffy: the human garbage disposal."

She was about to make another smart comment when she looked into his eyes. This was really bothering him; apparently she was a very good actress. Well, now she remembered why she hardly ever joked around in the first place. She placed the plate on her nightstand and leaned over him, touching her nose with his.

"I love the bacon. And every little crumb on that plate."

Sanji blinked. Well, that put him at ease. He sighed with relief, then tried to cover that up with a forced smug look. "Course you do, I made it..." Sanji said proudly. "Nothing on that plate is mediocre..." He kissed her lips. "You deserve better then _mediocre_ , Robin-chwan."

She smiled and kissed him softly. It was nothing short of remarkable how much more comfortable she was with him now. "I don't believe anything you could say or do could possibly be mediocre..." she said in low undertones over his lips.

Sanji was honestly touched to hear that. After all, he always made such an effort and tried so hard when it came to Nami or Robin, all the while thinking he went on, under appreciated. Oh, he knew Nami used him, and he never minded it. Robin was always leaving him hanging, for some reason, and Sanji finally felt like he'd made a connection with her.

He loved this. Spending time with her, sharing kisses with her. It was all he'd ever ask for.

"Robin-chwan," he said quietly, mainly out of the surprise. He wasn't sure what to say, but he took another kiss, deeper, and smiled at her. "The same goes for you."

She smiled, brushing her nose across his cheek, kissing the corner of his lips.

Only it was just then she realized that she was still quite pant-less. She shifted herself from her comfortable position beside him, reaching an arm over, planting her hand beside his head, while stretching her leg across him.

"Just a moment..." she said with a kiss to his nose once she was hovering over him.

She carefully maneuvered out of bed, careful not to take him with her, and she sauntered over to her closet.

Sanji was positive that every move she made was simply to tease him and taunt him. That, or he was just imagining it. He frowned and sat up, leaning back on his elbows with a very obvious pout on his features as he watched her.

Even the way her hips moved when she walked made Sanji grin lazily again. He flopped back, heaved a sigh and folded his arms behind his head. "You know, you could just walk around like that..." Sanji said, tilting his head and grinning at her. "I wouldn't mind~"

She laughed to herself, digging into black hole that was her closet. "I'm sure you wouldn't. Though I would most likely catch a cold, not being fully clothed and all." She sifted through her wardrobe, tossing various articles of clothing into the air. "And I'm sure you wouldn't want that..." She turned to look at him briefly, ever smiling. She was quite sure she'd smiled more in the past twelve hours than she ever had in the past few years of her life. It was… a strange feeling.

Sanji had to admit, she caught him there. He sighed in defeat and tilted his head back and stared up at the ceiling. If Nami or Robin so much as sneezed, he was usually there, asking if they were okay, if they needed anything he could give, then he'd proceed to shout wildly for Chopper to give them a brief check-up, some kind of medicine.

Sanji could get pretty out of control with his worldly love, after all.

He shrugged. "I could keep you warm," Sanji said seriously, tilting his head again and looking at her with that boyish grin on his face.

She stopped suddenly, turning to look at him as she placed a hand to her cheek.

"Cook-san," she began with an air of incredulity. "Are you trying to seduce me...?" she inquired with a sly smile. There it was again, creeping onto her lips. Things were happening inside her and she didn't quite know how to handle it.

He sat up and put his hands up in defense quickly. "Never, Robin-chwan!" he exclaimed, managing to look honestly insulted. "But," Sanji added very seriously, grinning like a fool as he eased back down on the bed. "If you feel... _seduced_ , then I'm right here. Ready and willing to keep you warm~"

She shook her head, laughing to herself. Impressive. "Oh, very smooth."

At last she had found her pair of pants. Though she held them idly in her arms, glancing quickly at Sanji, wondering if she should put them on or not. She smiled briefly to herself and slipped on one pant-leg after the other. Robin didn't want to seem to eager, after all. . . She then maneuvered herself back into bed the same way she came out of it, one leg and arm over him, then two.

He laughed as he watched her put her pants on and opened his arms to her, still grinning. "I'm a pretty smooth guy," Sanji said proudly as she crawled back into bed with him. "But why'd you put those on?" he asked her, planting a kiss here and there in between words. Innocent, but suggestive. "I'll just want to take them off, _Robin-chwan_ ~ _"_

She smirked, running her fingers nimbly across his neck. "That's precisely why I put them on. If I hadn't, we both know what you'd be _that_ much closer to."

He mumbled something in protest and closed his eyes, half-grinning as he leaned to her touch. "Exactly..." Sanji said quietly. "So why put them on? When I'll just..." His hands skirted down to her pants, and he chuckled as he undid the button, zipped them down,"...do that."

She grinned mischievously. Well, two could play this game.

"Well, technically, I could..." She climbed on top of him, unbuttoning the top half of his shirt. "Do that."

She was certainly beginning to come out of her shell, that was for certain.

"Yeah?" Sanji grabbed her by the hips, pulled her up forcefully, then reached up, his open hand sliding up her back and under her shirt, then unclasped her bra.

"And I could do that." he said, almost proudly. He laid back, knowing that had to be a little more than uncomfortable for her, expecting Robin to take off her shirt, or at least her bra, causing a break in the chain that was their little "game."

Still smiling, she bloomed two arms from her back, redoing her clasp, before she shrank them back.

Without a word, she undid his belt, and threw it aside as it hit the wall with a clang. She then promptly undid the button of his pants, unzipping them as well, raising an eyebrow.

She refused to accept defeat.

Sanji's jaw dropped, plain and simple. He gawked, staring at her in disbelief for a second or two, then cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure. It was a little hard to, especially after she just...

Owned him like that.

"Using that...devil power is almost like cheating." Sanji said knowingly before he kicked his shoes off. His hands slid up her sides and he stripped her of her shirt, whether she wanted it off or not, and tossed it off to the side.

This was far from over.


	4. IV

Hm. She would let him have that, she decided. Besides, it would probably be a pain in the ass to try and get that shirt back on herself.

"Well, that's life, you know," she began. "Sometimes you have to cheat... for things to go your way..." With that, she tugged on his tie—which had already been loosened considerably—pulling him forward as she slid his jacket off.

Well...she got him there again.

"Touché..." he said, grinning as he stole a kiss from the corner of her mouth. Unlike Robin, who seemed intent on dressing herself and undressing him, he didn't mind loosing the jacket, and he didn't mind popping another button or two from his shirt.

However, after that, he was back in the game, and suddenly rolled over, pinning Robin beneath him, and pulling back to tug her pants off.

"I think I'm winning," Sanji said proudly.

She blinked. Well, that was unexpected. Though that was part of what she recently discovered she liked about him. For as long as she could remember she had labeled him as being... rather one-dimensional. Not in a particularly bad way, but still, lacking dimension. Though she found that he pleasantly surprised her in the wake of... recent events.

She writhed and squirmed, realizing that she would look quite ridiculous if she tried to get on top of him again, her knees being locked together and all while he tugged at her pants.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "For now."

Sanji feigned a pout. "Don't look at me like that, Robin-chwan, you make me feel like the bad guy..." After all, wasn't it in his nature to let a lady win? He paused to consider this, then promptly decided that he would make an exception for today.

His hand on her hip, he stroked down the side of her thigh, trying to get her to relax enough for him to, well, get what he wanted. Sanji dropped down on the bed to her side and planted kisses along her bare skin with an arm around her. "Still winning, " he mumbled between kisses, grinning even then.

She blushed furiously, attempting to keep her stern countenance. Damnit, why the hell did he have to be so good at this? A smile then slowly crept onto her lips as she devised a plan. She took him by the chin, pulled him in and kissed him passionately. All the while, her leg slowly started to creep up his side . . .

Blissfully oblivious to whatever Robin was plotting, Sanji closed his eyes and kissed her back, completely and utterly distracted. His hand at her hip, his fingers stroked up and down at her side.

He didn't suspect a thing.

As she moved her hand over his shoulder, and at just the right moment, she pinned him, using her leg for leverage. She smiled triumphantly before lowering her head and whispering into his ear. "Now who's winning...?"

Sanji groaned and rolled his eyes. How, _how_ did this happen again? That's right, she cheated again, using that kiss to her advantage. Still, he was smiling as he wrapped his arms around her, slid his hands up her back and unclasped her bra for the second time that day.

Third time, if you wanted to get technical.

"Me," he said stubbornly, regardless of the situation. After all, how could he say he was losing when he was being pinned by Robin? It was a win-win situation, in his eyes.

She shook her head, smiling in disbelief. Well, he was persistent, if nothing else. Still, she decided to let it go this time. After all, he would just... well, keep trying. So she let it fall.

"You don't give up, do you?" She sat back a bit and tugged at his pants, pulling them off rather effortlessly.

He flashed a grin at her. "Never." Sanji said proudly as he loosened his tie a little more, then took it off and left it there, by the pillow. If there was one thing Sanji learned, it was never to give up. That rule applied everywhere. In a fight and in the bedroom.

This was a little bit of both-less of a fight, more a struggle between the two of them.

"After all, Robin-chwan, I'm still wearing more clothes than you." His hands went to her hips and he slipped his fingers under the straps of her underwear and slowly eased them down. "I feel like a winner..."

She smiled down at him. Hm. She really was thoroughly enjoying this. She looked down at herself. Well, she still had underwear on. That counted. Right?

"Not necessarily. We're both shirtless and pantless. Just because I had... less clothing on in the first place than you did doesn't exactly mean you win. Besides, I'm still on top of you..." she taunted, poking his chin.

Sanji laughed. "No," he said, closing his eyes and grinning as she poked his chin. "But I had an advantage. Besides, I can change that shirtless and pantless thing."

He moved about, trying to find a position that would make it easy for him to completely undress Robin, then declare himself the winner. For the record, he kept one hand on the elastic of his heart-patterned boxers to keep them on, just so he could say he still had them.

Moments later, Sanji was up, sitting cross-legged with the smuggest look on his face, twirling her underwear in his hand.

"I'm the victor~"

She looked in her lap, then at Sanji, back at her lap again, and then blinked in disbelief at him. How in hell did he do that? He was... and she was... and there was no _way_...

She tackled him after her momentary pause, reaching for what was rightfully hers.

"You _cheater_... hand... them over..." she demanded, laughing and struggling.

He laughed, holding them above his head, praying she didn't use that devil power of hers.

"So you can put them back on?" Sanji asked, holding her back with his free hand as he laughed and laughed. "Not a chance, Robin-chwan. I won, and I'll settle with your underwear as my prize~"

At that point, she was seriously considering using her powers. However, she decided not to, she didn't want to play _too_ dirty, and she was struck with an even better idea. Once she was sure his attention was focused toward her reach for her underwear, she quickly and swiftly tore his boxers off with her other hand, claiming them for her own.

"You won the battle. And I win the war," she said finally, smiling as sly as ever.

He scrambled up, sitting on his knees and stared at her in shock.

 _Damn_ , if she wasn't good at catching him off guard like that...

Glumly, he waved her underwear back and forth, as if it were some kind of white flag that admitted defeat. "Fine," he said. "You win the war." He tossed the underwear and reached for her, grinning, and caught her in a kiss. Very sound, very passionate. Finally, he pulled back, their noses touching and his eyes on hers. "For the record, I'm keeping your underwear."

She laughed, pressing her lips to his. Of all the things to say...

In between kisses she spoke. "Psh. You can have them. I practically let you win them, anyway." She then trailed a set of soft kisses across his jawline as she snaked her hands over his shoulders and around his neck."But these boxers... I won because I'm just that good..." She continued, trailing to his ear. "And that's why they're rightfully mine."

He grinned, making no attempt at hiding the fact that he was enjoying the attention. "But those are my favorite boxers..." Sanji protested lightly, stroking her back with his nimble fingers. "I don't have any others that are heart-patterned..." Sanji turned his head and kissed at her neck, pressing his lips here and there, at any bare skin he could find, sighing through his nose happily. He loved this, teasing her was all too fun. He never knew Robin could be so playful. "But you can have my shoes..."

Still smiling, she brought her lips back to his. "Liar. I'd bet anything you have a whole drawer full of them." She felt so different around him. Free. Uninhibited. She didn't feel as though she had to hide anything. Sure, she was still Robin, and still a bit timid at times, but with every second she spent with him, those inhibitions seemed to fade away... "So I'll take the boxers, thank you. Not really a shoe person, anyway."

Damn, she saw right through his little lie without even thinking about it. And how did she know he had a full drawer of them?

He laughed. "Fine, break my heart and take the only boxers that ever really meant anything to me..." he said, heaving a sigh too heavy to be real. "You owe me, though. And not just underwear." He paused. "Oi, Robin-chwan, how'd you know I had a whole drawer of 'em anyway?" Sanji regarded her with a suspicious look and a sly smirk. "Going through my underwear drawer, eh?"

She blushed slightly, looking at him with utter disbelief before calming herself down again. What a smartass...

"Hm. You'd like that, wouldn't you?" she said finally with a sly smile to match his. "Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I don't have to, nor will I ever need to, go through your underwear drawer. There are some things I just... _know_. It's called deductive reasoning." It was flippant; she managed to get all of that out without seeming agitated at all.

"Quit lying..." he grinned, leaning over her, his hands on both sides, practically pinning her to the bed. "You sneak in there at night, open the chest that holds all my clothes and go," Sanji pitched his voice up, for the sake of making her laugh, " 'Oh, my! Sanji has an entire trunk full of heart-patterned boxers! This will be useful information to use later on when I'm fighting him over underwear!' "

Upon hearing that, especially that impression, she was prepared to fully let him have it. Robin narrowed her eyes maliciously, glaring daggers at him. "I'll have you kno-"

Only that didn't quite work out. Just then he leaned in and took a kiss before she could say anything in protest. Very sound, very deep, very long. Sanji pulled back only once he was sure he'd taken her breath away, and grinned wide.

"Or, y'know, could've been that deductive reasoning stuff."

Luckily for him, Sanji just happened to be a damned good kisser, and by the time he pulled away she had already forgotten what she was so was going to say. Goddamnit.

"You..." she opened her mouth a few more times, as if to speak, but she didn't. She only pouted, averting her eyes from his.

"Me," he said cheekily, stroking a thumb across her cheek. Sanji bowed his head, planting kisses along her bare skin, making pleased little noises every now and then. "C'mon..." he paused, planting another kiss, giving another pleased sigh. "Mm, Robin-chwan..." Another, another. "I was..." Another. "Only kidding..." He looked up at her, grinning.

She bit her lip, looking up at the ceiling, attempting to hide the fact that she was thoroughly enjoying this. She was failing quite terribly. She turned her head to one side, trying to hide the smile that was dangerously creeping onto her lips.

Course, Sanji had to tilt his head, his hair spilling across her bare skin, his grin ever-present, and his hand massaging the side of her breast in an almost idle fashion, as if he barely knew he was doing it. "Just cause I won, you're gonna give me the silent treatment, now?" Sanji chuckled, sighed and lowered his head, going back to leaving wet trails of kisses along her skin. He'd get her to make some kind of noise, eventually.

A hand lowered to her leg, stroking up and down her thigh and gently eased her legs open, his eyes looking up at her just as his lips made contact with her skin. He paused there, cracking a smile at her.

She gasped, lightly, quietly, wanting to kick herself and hoping he didn't hear it. Damnit, she thought to herself, why was it her brain turned to mulch every time he... well, did that?

"How many times do I have to tell you... I won... Face it..." she began as she closely watched his every move and touch. "I'm just more intelligent than you are..."

Of course, he heard it, and it only pleased him. "One thing's for certain, Robin-chwan, " he said, leaving a kiss along her collarbone. "I didn't lose."

He chuckled then, taking the stab at his genius (actually, there was no genius, Sanji was too simple-minded) in stride. But then again, this was Robin-chwan he was measuring up against. He'd admit defeat to her intelligence any day of the week, just to please her, and partly because it was undeniably true.

Sanji realized she liked to watch, and he grinned up at her, making sure he had her eyes on his as he rolled his hips forward and teased her before slowly, he pushed in, grunting.

Very slowly. Inch by inch.

As if he were teasing her.

And damn it, he was.

She immediately shut one eye, taking in a sharp breath. God _damnit_ all, he was driving her insane.

"N-no... I think you're mistaken... I won fair and—" All right. Breather. "Square..." She couldn't keep her typically stoic face from contorting as that familiar torrent crept up on her; hell, she could barely keep her breathing under control.

Arguing and making love. Sanji could've laughed if he wasn't so focused on driving her more insane.

Everything was slow. He moved his hands down her sides slowly, fingertips dragging over her hips and down. Sanji gathered up her legs and raised them and pushed in further, all thoughts of their little debate being pushed to the back of his mind to be considered later. He sighed in, then let out a slow breath, then opened his eyes to watch her as he moved, smirking.

He drew back, then rolled his hips against hers, taking his sweet time as he started a slow and steady rhythm.

Sanji didn't protest at who won, who lost...

At least...not yet.


	5. V

Every comeback and smartass remark she had been thinking about saying melted off her tongue. She couldn't think of anything but him, and how with every push he drove her a little more over the edge. She tried to pull her hips back towards her, to make it a little easier on herself; It was almost too much. In the midst of all this she turned her head away, curling her finger and biting onto it in an attempt to stifle her moans.

Sanji kept control over himself and nuzzled his face into the soft flesh where her neck and shoulder met. He grunted and groaned and picked up his speed with every thrust, his hands settling on her hips.

His grip on her loosened for her sake, and Sanji molded against her body in what he would call a perfect way when he lowered himself on her. He kept silent for the most part, focusing on controlling his breathing as he moved, but eventually, as time went on, he let out a long, drawn out moan into her neck, his warm breath spilling over her skin.

She couldn't hold back anymore; the moans which emitted from her throat could certainly attest to this. Suddenly, she arched her back, interlocking her fingers in her hair.

"Hayaku . . . Please . . ."

Typically Nico Robin didn't beg for anything. However, this was one huge exception. That was precisely what she needed. Everything faster. More intense. She sorely _needed_ it. "Sorely" as in it literally _hurt_ that she wasn't having it.

He complied, gathering her up in one arm, holding her leg in the other hand, and thrust into her until he felt that familiar, slick sweat accumulate to a fine sheen over his body.

Sanji groaned, his hips driving into hers, and gathered a fistful of sheets in one hand and he sucked in a breath of air and held it. His eyes squeezed shut.

She groaned, low and deep, bringing him closer to her, wrapping her arms around him. One arm, two arms, three and four arms. The hands of each journeyed to various places over his back, all of them raking fingers across his skin.

There were really only two occasions where Robin bloomed arms, honestly without even knowing she was doing it: (1)When she was in some sort of dire situation in which she had no way out of, or (2) When she was in the throws of ecstasy. This was a bit of both.

Sanji had to say it was a welcomed surprise. The touches that roamed his back all but encouraged him, not to mention made him moan with raw delight.

Suddenly, he lifted his head and grunted, releasing inside of her in shuddering bursts. He rocked his hips, riding it out until he satisfied himself, nuzzling his face into her neck, kissing and groaning and working himself into exhaustion.

She pulled his face over to hers, kissing his lips, sighing softly into them. It was all she could do to keep from screaming. She wrapped her legs around him as tight as she possibly could, curling her toes, her entire body slightly shivering.

"Unngh, Robin-chwan..." he managed to sigh out, his forehead touching hers. Sanji's grip on the bed sheets loosened and his hand found her hair, his other slipped around her. He felt her shiver and smirked almost unconsciously as he rolled his hips against hers, filling her completely.

She let out shattered, staggered breaths as her eyes glazed over, and slowly, her extra ligaments began to shrink back. She wrapped her arms around his neck, fingers laced in his hair, pulling him close as the taut grip of her legs began to loosen.

He cracked a smile. From breakfast in bed to arguing about underwear to mind-blowing sex . . . Sanji was really liking this morning, he thought as he kissed her lips gently.

He mumbled here and there before he dropped his head into the comfortable space above her shoulder. "For the record," he mumbled,"I won..."

Talk about a curveball.

 _What_ a damn smart ass. She would've laughed out loud if he hadn't made her so weak.

"You can keep telling yourself that . . . But you're simply in denial of the fact that I'm superior to you."

"Robin-chwan..." he said, grinning to himself as he kissed her bare shoulder. "So eager to jump back into the debate?" He sighed-more like a low hum-and played with her hair. "Can't we just bask in the afterglow?"

She smiled, feeling the warmth of his lips grace her skin. Once again, she found it was damn near impossible to say no to him, especially now that he was giving her goose-bumps.

"If you insist."

If Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, Nami or Chopper happened to be wondering where their usual available cook was (or even where Robin was), Sanji either didn't put it into consideration or didn't care. He stretched, all lanky limbs and happy sighs, and rolled off of Robin, slipped his arm around her and mumbled something about it being too early in the day to feel this tired.

"And to think," Sanji said, his chin resting on the top of her head. "None of this would've happened if you just came to dinner last night like everyone else."

She smiled, nuzzling his neck and sighing softly through her nose. He had a point. A valid one, at that.

"Very true," she began. "Fate . . . is a funny thing . . ."

And really, it was. If someone had told her a week ago—nay, just a night ago—that she would be smiling, laughing, happy, in the warmth of someone's arms, _Sanji's_ at that, she would have laughed and thusly advised them to lay off the rum. Yet here she was.

Afterglow gave him time to reflect in a silence that was too comfortable and easy to break. Robin. Nico Robin. He thought he'd never get her to open up to him, but he was working at it, chipping away at the walls she'd been building over the course of her life whether she liked it or not.

Sanji had a way of pushing his nose in places where it probably wouldn't be welcomed, hence the initiative he'd taken to go back to her room the night before.

He was fascinated with her, captivated by her, honestly and genuinely interested in her and what she said, how she looked, the way she moved and those little noises she made when he made love to her. All of it-he loved it.

"Yeah," he finally said. "Real funny, sometimes."

It was interesting . . . Robin had probably read more books in a year than most people read in their entire lives. Yet, of the billions of words she knew, not one of them seemed able to accurately describe Sanji. She had tried, but no words seemed to do him justice. He was literally _indescribable_. As she thought this, she smiled up at him dreamily, wishing she knew of a way to tell him that without sounding completely trite . . .

Sanji swallowed, lost in a sea of thoughts, and closed his eyes.

"You know, Robin-chwan," he said,"I know I act..." Lovey-dovey, ridiculous, all those words came to mind and he chuckled to hear it. "I act crazy, sometimes, but..."

What to say, what to say.

"I really do care about you," he said.

She blinked, her heartbeat picking up a few notches. That was honestly the most genuine thing anyone had ever said to her, and it touched her deeply. She was speechless.

_Say something . . . anything . . ._

"I know you're a bit of a lovesick puppy," she began with a teasing smile. "But . . . well, words are a tricky thing . . . I don't think there is any combination of them that could possibly express . . ." She bit her lip, hesitating. Come on, Robin. Get a grip. Now is not the time to lock up. ". . . How I feel . . . about you . . ."

Sanji, being the nitwit that he was, didn't know whether or not to take that as a good thing or a bad thing.

Robin still was, after all, a mystery box he was trying to pry open with a crow-bar.

"Ah," he said, nodding. Maybe he just left her speechless. But still, was that a good or a bad thing? He paused thoughtfully, considering this. "Yeah, words are pretty-uh-tricky sometimes."

She shifted her eyes, biting her lip nervously. Well, that didn't go quite as expected. Still, she tried. That was about as flowly-feely as Robin had ever gotten with her emotions.

She then smiled to herself, struck with an idea. She reached up with one hand, pulling him into a passionate kiss, paying attention to every crease, crevasse, and curvature of his lips.

"Hopefully that answers any lingering questions," she said finally, pulling away only slightly.

He blinked up at her in complete shock, lips still parted from the kiss they shared. He had to say, that filled in the blanks for him. Sanji suddenly broke into a boy-ish grin, that grin he'd get when someone mentioned the All-Blue, when Nami showered him with praise, the one Zoro called the "shit-eating grin." That little boy grin that he never grew out of.

"Yeah," he said, running his fingers through her hair. "That answers everything perfectly."

That smile on his face was just one of the many things she found she had grown to love about him already.

"Good," she said, wrapping an arm around his waist, kissing his neck softly as she closed her eyes. This had been some morning. They had technically made love twice in one day. That was pretty much a record for her. For Sanji . . . heh . . . she wasn't as sure.

Still equipped with the same smile, Sanji sighed happily and pressed his lips into her hair. "Yeah, good," he agreed. "So far, this day has been pretty, er-" he paused, searching for a word that wouldn't make him sound like the pervert cook he was,"-exciting, eh?" Sanji chuckled. Exciting was acceptable—and true. "We're like rabbits, Robin-chwan."

She laughed and nuzzled closer to him. Well,"exciting" was one way to put it.

"You started it, both times," she replied with a sly smile.

"Hey, now," Sanji blinked his eyes open and pulled his head back, just enough to give her a mock serious stare. "Just because you're seduced by my obvious wit and charm, Robin-chwan, doesn't mean you have to say it like it's a bad thing..." He cracked a smile. Teasing. He liked this.

She poked his chin, laughing. It seemed like all he ever did was tease her. She didn't mind. It made him that much more interesting to her.

"Wit and charm my ass. I was only caught up in the moment, that's all. That's how it happened."

 _It's only coincidental that you're so damn good at it_ , she thought to herself, slightly flushed.

"Mmmm," Sanji chuckled. "I'll let you use that excuse, Robin-chwan," he said, grinning to himself as he closed his eyes. "But I still think I'm very charming..."

"Trust me, it's no excuse . . ." Robin replied as she scoffed. She then softly kissed his collarbone. "And oh, yes . . ." she began, sarcasm dripping off her tongue. "You're a regular Casanova, let me tell you . . ." She smirked, running her fingers over his chest.

"Yeah?" he said slowly, grinning from ear to ear, appreciating her fingers on his skin. "Why Robin-chwan, I don't know what to say..." Sanji threaded his fingers in her hair, kissed her forehead and enjoyed the moment. Pillow talk. He liked this, too. "A regular Casanova, eh?" he chuckled, "I thought so, too."

She smiled to herself, shaking her head. Up until this point in her life, all the men she had been involved with had been book smart, sure, but they lacked that biting wit that Sanji had. She would say something smart, and they wouldn't have a damned thing to say in reply, as if they were afraid of her for some reason or another. Quite frankly it bored her.

But now it appeared she had finally met her match.

"I know you tell that to yourself every morning when you look in the mirror. But I figured you needed a second opinion. Reinforcement."

She replied, her fingers still nimbly touching his stomach, up to his chest, and back down again.

It would have made Sanji laugh to know that Robin felt she "met her match" in the form of a pervert love cook pirate. He grinned lop-sidedly, leaned his eyes back and chuckled. Her touch made him devoid of any thought. "Second opinion." he said, humming lightly. "Mm, yeah, reinforcement. Sure, Robin-chwan." Agree, agree, yeah, sure, Robin-chwan, whatever you say, he wanted to say.

She smiled, either she was imagining things, or it seemed _his_ brain was turning to mulch for a change. Perhaps her hands were going a bit to low. Ah, well, no matter. She liked it. "Don't tell me you're about to go to sleep already. Your eyelids look as though they've weights on them," she added with a smirk.

"I'm not tired..." Sanji mumbled here and there as his eyes drooped, closed, and he smiled wide. Robin's touch brought on shivers he found blissful. "Just ah..." he searched for words,"...distracted, yeah."

"Dreadfully sorry . . ." she said, still smiling, as she slowly brought her hands to a halt. "Perhaps I should stop . . .?"

He moaned in protest. "Robin-chwan," Sanji said, looking down at her. "I never knew you could be this cruel." He pouted boyishly, rolled over on his other side to face away from her, and jerked the covers up, lost in a sea of blankets.

Course, he was only acting.

She almost laughed out loud, but she decided not to, as it would ruin her next move. She only smiled pleasantly, and slowly slipped a hand underneath the covers, trickling her fingers up his side and back down again.

"Cook- _san_ . . ." she called quietly, that dreamy tone ever-present in her voice.

He groaned and grumbled, burying his face in the pillow. "Kissing up to me to get on my good side, eh?"  
Sanji scoffed mockingly. But he had to admit, he was craving her touch. Damn, she had him wrapped around her pinky finger, even more than before.

"It's working-so don't stop..." He grinned like a fool.

She grinned, moving up next to him and trailing kisses over his shoulder and up his neck.

"Wasn't planning to . . ." she said smiling, in between kisses.

He grinned, moving slowly onto his back, and gathered her up in his arms. "Ah, Robin-chwan," he said, sighing dreamily, "I could never stay mad at you..." He stole a kiss from her lips.

She began walking two fingers nimbly over his chest.

"Of course you can't. Seeing as how you're seduced by my obvious wit and charm. . ." she added with a sly grin.

He erupted in laughter, his head tossed back and his mouth open. Laughing, laughing. Because that was funny-to hear that from her.

Seduced by her wit and charm.

The funny thing was-she was absolutely right. No joke about it, Sanji was.

And that's what made him laugh.

"Ah, Robin-chwan," he sighed longingly. "It's true, I must say..."

When she'd said it, she'd only been poking a bit of fun at him, but apparently she had just accidentally-on-purpose gotten a declaration out of him.

"Aha. A confession," she said, smiling slyly. She was about to add more, but something else caught her attention. She noticed his shirt at the foot of the bed. She immediately decided she wanted it. It was rather impulsive, despite her character.

She sat up and grabbed it hastily, slipping it on, nearly engulfed by it as she fastened the buttons.

Sanji laughed still as he sat, propped up by his elbows, and aimed a smirk in her direction. There was something about a woman, he thought. Something about a woman wearing his shirt that made him adore her more.

"Robin-chwan..." he sighed longingly, tilting his head to the side only slightly-better angle. "You look _stunning._ "

She smiled, scrambling out of bed, standing up and finding a mirror.

"You really think so . . .?" she said, swirling a bit, looking behind her at various different angles. "Well then. I'm keeping this, too." She then turned up the collar with her fingers, which appeared practically miniscule poking out of the cuffs.

Sanji grinned lazily, watching her with a wandering eye. He sat up and hopped onto the edge of the bed, legs over the side and knees apart, and reached for her. Sanji pulled Robin to him by her hips, then leaned his tilted head forward, taking a deep breath.

It smelled like her room after they made love-it smelled like him, it smelled like her. That perfume she used, mingled with the faint smell of cigarettes. He pulled his head back and looked up at her with a grin.

"I don't mind," he said. "I've got a thousand of these shirts, and you definitely look good in it. Better than I look in it."

She smiled down at him, running her slender fingers through his hair.

"Well, I'm glad you feel that way. Because I was going to keep it whether you wanted me to or not," she said with that dreamy smile and a soft poke to his chin.

He grinned, taking her hand and studied it. He kissed the tips of every finger slowly, taking his time. "I figured you would, so I gave up no questions asked..." After all, this was Sanji, a devout follower of _Sanji-ism_ , providing that all women win.

-Except in the case of underwear stealing. That was a different chapter entirely.

"You know I can't say no to you," he said, grinning still as he let his arms drape around her loosely. "Did you want the shoes, too, Robin-chwan?"

She smiled pleasantly at the feeling of his lips over her fingertips. "We've had this conversation before," she began, taking her hand and running it over his chest, pushing him lightly backward. "Not a shoe person . . . More of a . . . shirt and boxer woman . . ." She slowly crawled on top of him as she brought her nose to touch his. "Along with the _occasional_ pair of pants . . ."

"You want my pants, too?" Sanji grinned up at her as his fingers stroked up and down her sides. "And the belt? Cause yanno..." he stole a kiss at the side of her mouth, closing his eyes and working to her lips, then kissed her soundly. "Yanno," he continued, his fingers in her hair, his other hand on her hip. "all you have to do is ask, and I'll give."

"Oh, I couldn't . . ." she said, her skin tingling as she felt his fingertips against it. "I just couldn't take _all_ of your clothes . . . What would you wear when you left?" she added with a sly smile. Her lips hovered over his as she was about to kiss him, though something stopped her. There was a rapping at her door.

Actually, 'rapping' was a polite way to put it. It was more like incessant pounding.


	6. VI

She scrambled out of bed, grabbing the first pair of pants she saw. Underwear . . . she would have to do without.

She hurried to the door, and whilst she turned the knob, she turned to look at Sanji, placed a finger to her lips, and made a quiet "Shh" noise, smiling even then.

Sanji flipped out of the bed in surprise, hit the floor with a hard _thump_ , then jumped back to his feet and threw the covers of his head.

"Whoa, shit," he whispered, stilling his breath. For some reason, having the other Straw Hat Pirates know about their relationship wasn't all too appealing to Sanji. And he hoped whoever the hell was pounding at her door wouldn't notice that Robin was still wearing his shirt. That, or either Robin was good at coming up with an excuse.

She opened the door, slowly, and cracked it open about six inches.

And there was Luffy, attempting to poke his head through the door. Though there was no way in all hell she was going to let him. It wasn't that she was embarrassed of Sanji by any means, but she wasn't at all ready to announce to the whole ship that they had slept together.

"Oi, Robin," he began, still poking his nose through the small crack in the door. "Are you okay? It sounded like you were hurt!"

She immediately blushed. He must've heard. Oh, brother . . . excuse. Something, anything.

"I had a . . . um . . . head-stomach . . . er . . . I was sick." She noticed he was about to open his mouth and call for Chopper, but she immediately stopped him. " _But_ I'm fine! Really. Better now."

He raised an eyebrow, obviously still suspicious. "Well . . . if you're sure . . ." Though his suspicions were immediately put to rest by a thought that suddenly occurred to him. "Hey! _By_ the way, _WHERE_ is SANJI?! I think my stomach is about to EAT ITSELF."

She blushed again, biting her lip. "Honestly, I haven't the slightest idea. Did you look in the kitchen?"

Suddenly, it was as if a light bulb had gone off in his head. "The kitchen! _Aha_! The last place he would suspect me to find him . . . because that's the FIRST place he would suspect me to! I'll go look!"

She only blinked at him, wondering when Sanji had turned into a fugitive suspect. "Er . . .right. Well, good luck with that," she said smiling as she shut the door and turned her back on it, shutting her eyes and resting her head against it.

Shitty Luffy. Shitty Captain. Shitty endless stomach of his.

Sanji let out a breath he didn't know he took and threw the covers off of him. Thankfully, Luffy was too dense to notice she was wearing his shirt.

Phew. Close call.

Had that been Nami, Sanji would've been sure that she would've pieced everything together without so much as saying, "Hello."

Sanji sat up and checked his watch. "Him and his logic..." he muttered, shaking his head. "Him and his _stomach_..." He looked up at Robin and grinned. "I should let his stomach eat itself, eh?"

She sighed, laughing. This was one of the few occasions where she was glad that Luffy was such an idiot. That was _extremely_ close.

"I, for one, think you should feed him. Luffy always has to have _something_ in his stomach, otherwise, well, you know, _that_ happens." She started unbuttoning the shirt, still laughing. "You might need this."

"Yeah," Sanji agreed, rolling out of bed. He stuck a leg through his boxers, then another, then went to her, unbuttoning the rest of his shirt as he planted a few kisses along her neck, breathing her in again.

He slipped the shirt off her slowly, grinned, and pulled away to put his shirt back on. He got dressed without another word and looped his belt into his pants. Sanji took a glance at the mirror to make sure he looked presentable.

"I'll send Chopper for you when lunch is ready, eh?" He hung by her door. "Can I get a kiss goodbye?"

She grabbed one of her shirts that had been hanging over a chair and began to put it on. Back turned, she spoke, her head slightly turned, as she buttoned it up.

"If you would like to come over here, then yes, you may," she said finally with a smirk for additional cheekiness.

He mumbled and grumbled as he shuffled over to her like a dog with its tail between its legs and leaned in, stole a kiss and flashed her a smile.

"See you at the table, Robin-chwan. Try not to miss it by reading, or else I'll have to come back here personally myself and feed you." Sanji winked and checked his tie in her mirror one last time before he was gone, humming as he headed for the kitchen.

She only smiled dreamily as she watched him leave, and she began humming to herself as she finished getting dressed.

She wondered idly if she wanted to go or not. The madness of the kitchen table was one thing, and then all the smartass comments she would probably get because she hardly ever ate with everyone else were another.

She sighed. There she went, over-analyzing every damn detail of every possible situation. This was supposed to be something simple, but to Robin, nothing was simple. Hence why she was so analytical. She hated that sometimes.

Sure enough, some thirty, forty minutes later, Sanji was calling for everyone to come to lunch, and had everything arranged perfectly.

Robin's seat he'd especially adored upon, setting a flower there in a small glass vase he had in the cupboard. Nami tilted her head and wondered why she hadn't gotten one since Sanji always seemed to shower them both in affection equally, but she never asked.

He kicked Luffy back from the table when Luffy threatened to swallow everything whole and ordered the swordsman to wash his hands before he sat down. Usopp took his seat and Sanji asked Chopper to go get Robin, like he said he would.

Luffy laughed long and loud. "Robin's reading~"

"She isn't," Sanji insisted. "Chopper, tell her lunch is ready."

Meanwhile, Robin had just won the argument with herself. She was going, she finally decided. This wasn't about her. Think about someone else, for a change, Robin . . .

She jumped a little when she heard the knock at her door. It was then she remembered that Chopper was supposed to send for her. She opened her door and there he was, beaming up at her.

"Sanji says it's time to eat! Are you . . . um, coming?" he said quietly. She could tell he had been a little afraid to ask her that last part. Which was partly why she was so eager to give him her reply. To prove him wrong, essentially.

"Yes, actually. Thank you," she said finally with a pleasant smile.

All the doubt had dispersed immediately from his face. "Great! C'mon, then!" And with that, he latched onto her hand with both hooves, dragging her to the kitchen.

They were going to have the best damn lunch they'd ever had, Sanji decided. They weren't going to throw food, he'd stab Luffy's hand with a fork (or a steak knife, whichever was in close reach) if he caught him snatching food from anyone's plate, and he'd ban Zoro from the table for life if he so much _looked_ at him the wrong way.

"Best behavior. For a half an hour," Sanji muttered. "We're waiting for Robin and Chopper, got it?"

Luffy was whining, swaying, drooling and complaining. "She's not coming, Sanji, she's-"

The door opened and Chopper led Robin into the kitchen. Sanji straightened up and grinned. Now, they could eat with everyone present and accounted for. "Enjoy!"

He was falling in love with her, and he was trying his hardest to make everything move as smoothly as possible for the both of them. This was Sanji, eager to please and eager to make everything work the way she wanted it to.

She stood there, looking around as everyone seemed to gawk at her, as if she had some kind of deformity. Or as if she never came out to socialize. Which she never did.

She gave a weak smile and glanced at Sanji as she spoke _in the kitchen_ for the first time in quite a while.

"Where would you like for me to sit . . .?"

He patted her seat—right next to him, naturally—and grinned proudly, glancing over at Luffy, who was probably the most surprised.

"Close your mouth, Luffy, you're drooling on my table," Sanji said, laughing. "Everyone enjoy the baked fish Usopp caught this morning!"

She obliged, crossing her legs politely as she stared at her plate and took a breath. What to say . . . Damnit, what the hell did people usually say at these things?

She was trying desperately not to look up; she could feel five pairs of eyes on her, whether they were discreet or not, she could still feel them.

Groups of people and making conversation were definitely not her forte.

Sanji put his hand on her knee, a small gesture to put her at ease. And even though it was brief, it was something, and that slight contact relaxed her. He had a way of doing that, making her feel multitudes better with the smallest of actions.

"Usopp," Sanji spoke up, coming off as unnaturally cheerful to the rest of the crew. "Tell us how you caught the fish."

Usopp nodded quickly and proceeded to tell the story and Luffy chomped on his food. Zoro yawned and muttered something about booze while Nami wiped Chopper's mouth off. Dinner resumed, and Sanji flashed a secret smile at Robin.

Her smile got a little wider, and a little more genuine as she listened to Usopp's tale, and she started to eat, feeling more and more at ease as it seemed no one was staring anymore.

Things were going smoothly for them both, it seemed. That was until Nami leaned close to Sanji, smiling pleasantly, and asked him in a quiet whisper what he'd been doing all day.

His face paled considerably as he swallowed his drink wrong and beat on his chest.

"You weren't in the men's rooms or the kitchen when I was looking for you," Nami said, still keeping her smile. "Luffy was trying to get some tangerines and I needed you to beat him off for me, but...you weren't there. So, Sanji, where were you?"

He swallowed. It wasn't a question he could answer safely.

Robin, being as observant as she was, noticed Nami out of the corner of her eye, but decided not to say anything. She hadn't heard what she was saying, but the look on Sanji's face told her all she needed to know. Of course, she didn't want to seem rude, so she decided to turn her attention elsewhere.

"So Doctor-san . . ." she began, smiling over at him. All right, just . . . ask how his day was. People do that all the time at these things, don't they? "How were things today? Uneventful, more or less?"

He shrugged, chewing happily on his fish. "Yea, pretty much. Oh! I heard you were sick earlier, is that true?"

Robin nearly coughed up her drink. Oh, yes. That.

"Well . . . it was just a small . . . sore throat . . ." Wait. She had said headache. Not sore throat. Damnit.

Luckily for her, Chopper either didn't remember or didn't notice, and he and Usopp became engaged in conversation soon thereafter.

Meanwhile, Nami kept prying until Sanji really couldn't take it anymore. He ran his hand through his hair and looked down at his plate. Excuse. Think of anything- _anything_ at all.

"Eh-well-" Sanji started, looking away. "I was helping Robin-chwan alphabetize her books." _Damn_ , he thought. That was actually a decent excuse.

Nami stared at him suspiciously until Sanji felt the sweat start to form on his brow. Luffy, however, saved the day when he snatched food from her plate. Normally, Sanji would've scolded him, but he was too relieved.

Okay. So far so good. You haven't offended anyone, and no one seems to notice the horrific job you're doing of making conversation, Robin told herself.

She sipped her drink politely as she swiftly brought her arm under the table and touched Sanji's thigh. When she touched him, it made her feel connected . . . as if she were a part of something, and not so constantly distant . . .

Sanji was still recovering from that interrogation he'd gone through with Nami. When he felt Robin's hand on his thigh, he reached under the table and locked fingers with her.

She put her glass down, and her smile broadened. That was it. That was what she needed. She didn't know why, but she felt as if it was something she just had to have.

It made Sanji feel more at ease. He looked up at her and smiled, stroking his thumb over the back of her palm.

"Oi," Luffy said, getting everyone's attention. "Who's doing dishes!?"

Sanji rolled his eyes. Why bother to ask when it was always him? "Ero-cook," Zoro said, grinning maliciously.

"Ero-cook!" Usopp echoed, raising his glass.

Even Chopper laughed in his seat. "Ero-cook!"

" _Love_ -cook," Sanji corrected angrily. "And yeah, I'll do the dishes."

She shook her head, smiling as she heard their incessant heckling. In all honesty, there was a time where she would have agreed, but he was so much more than that awful nickname.

"As soon as they file out, I'm going to help you with those whether you like it or not . . ."

She said quietly out of the corner of her mouth.

"Robin-chwan..." Sanji said, half-pouting. "You know I don't want you to help..."

"Ero-cook, ero-cook!" Luffy was laughing, food spilling out of the mouth, and Zoro shut him up with a shove.

From then on, Sanji's perfect lunch he'd wanted shattered, and a food fight ensued.


	7. VII

By the time everyone had eventually gone off from the table, Sanji was left picking rice out of his hair.

Still, he didn't seem too bothered by it as he began to stack plates and bring them to the sink. "Eh," he said, grinning at her. "And they wonder why you don't eat with us..."

She started gathering plates as well. She was at least a thousand times more efficient, and in no time at all she had every last plate that was left in her various newly-grown arms.

"Actually . . . I liked it," she began, surprised at herself for actually saying it. "Much more . . . exciting than any book I've ever read, and that's for certain," she added with a bright smile as she stacked the plates in the sink, emptying them of various food items that had been left over. "I should eat with you more often."

Sanji looked surprised as he started to roll up his sleeves and turned on the tap. He looked over at her.

Huh, she didn't look like she was kidding or lying...

"Well," Sanji said, grinning as he went to work, bubbles already filling the sink. "It can get a little crazy sometimes, eh?" He paused. "Robin-chwan? I got all the rice out of my hair, right?" Damn Luffy and his good arm, _and_ how perfectly he had aimed that rice at his head.

She took one of her many hands and brushed her fingers through his hair.

"Hmm . . . Ah, here's one," she said, smiling as she plucked it out. "Luffy has some aim, I'll give him that much." Still smiling, she then went back to the dishes, dipping several at a time in the soapy water, scrubbing, and washing whilst her hands were in sync, like clockwork.

"Luffy has some aim? T'ch," Sanji rolled his eyes, but he was smiling as he worked swiftly and quickly, finishing his stack of dishes and beginning to dry them. He left a kiss on Robin's cheek before he turned to go put them away, then began to wipe up the table.

"Thanks, Robin-chwan," he said, slipping his arms around her from behind. He reached into the sink and gathered a handful of soapy bubbles, the set some on her nose, laughing. "For helping me out with the dishes."

She laughed, tweaking her nose as she tried to get the bubbles off. "It's nothing, really. I'm sure it would've taken you much longer otherwise."

He shrugged. "You're right, and the company was welcomed..." Sanji grinned as he reached for a towel and wiped the bubbles off her nose for her, then reached in the sink and popped the plug.

"And to think, there's still dinner to go through..." Sanji sighed with a sarcastic longing. "That's when the food fights get serious. Chopper usually tallies up the points. Luffy's been in the lead since last week..."

She smiled, shrinking her various arms back and shaking her hands dry. "Now _that_ I must see. And Luffy in the lead . . . I'm not surprised in the least. And to think I've been missing these spectacles," she added with a smirk as she walked a little closer to him.

"Yeah, well..." Sanji grinned lazily, leaning back against a counter with his elbows propped on it and shrugged a shoulder. "I'm not that far behind..." He scoffed. "So Usopp, Nami and even Chopper, the tally-keeper are beating me. What matters is I'm ahead of mosshead."

She walked up to him, draping her arms loosely over his shoulders and around his neck. "Well, I'm sure that's the significance of the matter. Assuring that Bushido-san is beaten." She had always thought their rivalry was more or less juvenile, but she also knew it just must've been some unspoken certainty between the two of them.

"Yeah," Sanji said, tilting his head and taking a kiss from her. "He can't aim for shit..."

He slipped his hand around her waist, pulled her a little closer, and closed his eyes as he left a few scattered kisses at her neck and—

His eyes went to the door. It was possible that Luffy might launch himself in here, Nami might get curious again, or that shitty swordsman might even steal something from the pantry...

She noticed his eyes trail to the door, and she knew exactly what he was thinking. It was extremely likely that someone could burst in on them. She merely looked at the door, and bloomed about a dozen arms coming out from the walls, literally holding the door shut.

"You were saying . . .?" she said finally with a sly smile.

Sanji laughed to the ceiling. That, he thought, had to be the highlight of his day. That Devil Power came into use. . . "Nothing, nothing," he told her, his arms snaking around her and pulling her close. "I wasn't saying a thing..." Sanji stole a kiss, long, deep and passionate. It was like he couldn't keep his hands off of her, couldn't stop kissing her, tasting her or breathing her scent in.

She laced her fingers through his hair, returning his kisses feverishly; it was intoxicating. She must've been going insane. She went a half hour without being _with_ him, _close_ to him, and she found herself starving for his touch, going mad for it.

He smirked around their kisses, his lips pressing to hers urgently. "Miss me that much, Robin-chwan?" he asked her breathlessly and suddenly lifted her by her legs, holding her up by her rear, and kissed her until he was forced to pull back and take in a breath.

He staggered forward, one hand slapping down on the table, and laid her down, leaning over her with that boyish grin on his face. "Missed you, too."

She laughed, shaking her head. Always so sure of himself . . .

"And how do you know I missed you 'that much'? What _if_ I just felt like kissing you?" she inquired, smirk in place and eyebrow raised as she poked his chin.

He smirked lazily. "Well, Robin-chwan..." Sanji said thoughtfully, glancing over at the door. "You seem damn determined to keep me barricaded in here when all you wanted was a little kiss..." He then shrugged and put his hands up. "And if that's all you wanted..." Sanji straightened up, grinning inwardly, and shrugged his shoulders. "Then I guess I'd better go, ne?"

Damn sure of himself.

If he thought for a second she was going to _beg_ him to stay, he was sadly mistaken. She sat up, crossing her legs over the edge of the table. She quickly glanced at the door and removed her various extra ligaments.

"Have a good one," she said casually as she placed a hand to her cheek.

Robin was the epitome of self-control.

Sanji blinked, then turned around and looked at her. Being nineteen years old and a little bit naive, he wondered if she was really going to let him go. He decided he wouldn't take that chance.

"Lock the door..." he mumbled, going back to her and taking her in another kiss.

She smiled in self-satisfaction as she sprouted arms once again, barricading the door. "Apparently _you_ missed _me_ more than you think . . ." she said in between kisses, running her fingertips over his cheeks and neck.

Sanji didn't care. He could just tell himself she had been bluffing to make himself feel better later. "Yeah, well..." he mumbled against her skin before he paused and shrugged his jacket off, "I'll admit that."

She only smiled as she kissed him again, deeper, as she tugged at his tie, finally pulling it out. "And by the way, Mr. I'm-So-Damn-Smug . . ." she began, in between soft kisses. Well, it was only fair to tell him, after all. "That was a bluff." She took his tie and slowly tied it around his head, using it as an impromptu blindfold.

"Bluff!" he said in triumph, even though he couldn't see a damned thing. He paused, ceasing his kisses, and pulled back, still leaning over her, but waiting. "I hope..." he said slowly. "You don't plan on sneaking out while I'm blindfolded..." He smirked. Robin-chwan couldn't be _that_ cruel.

She sat up, and in no time at all she had laid him over the table.

"Oh, I could never . . ." She slowly began to crawl on top of him, trailing kisses up his neck, over his chin and to his lips. "Besides, I have a much further convoluted plan than that. . ."

Sanji, as blind as he was, found her hips with his hands and nearly sat up when her lips went away, wanting them already. "Good, cause if you left me now..." Sanji willed himself not to take the blindfold off. Patience, he could do. "I don't think I could forgive you, Robin-chwan," he grinned.

She lightly swept her lips over his, and kept them there as she spoke.

"You don't have anything to worry about," she began. "At least not until I'm finished with you," she added with a sly smile. It was then that she did something quite unexpected. She rolled off of him, sitting beside him, still smiling, letting him hang in the suspense for a bit.

Unbeknownst to Robin, Sanji was expecting it: utterly and completely. His hands shot up in the air and he waved them around. "Robin-chwan..." he half-whined, "Don't do this to me..."

She didn't say a word. She only looked at him and, one by one, bloomed arms from the surface of the table. Each hand began unbuttoning his shirt and loosening his pants, little by little.

And all she did was smile.

Sanji nearly screamed like a girl—that one he didn't see coming. That really would've been unsexy. Utterly and completely. Instead, his entire body jumped in surprise and he gulped as he felt hands everywhere—all over.

For the second time that day, he decided that her powers really came in handy.

"Robin-chwan," he sighed out, grinning like a fool, "You had me scared there for a second..." he kicked his shoes off.

It took everything she had not to laugh when she saw him jump like that. Priceless. "I'm aware of that . . ." she said, trying not to snicker. She was getting a little impatient, so rather than finishing the buttons, she merely popped the rest of his shirt open, as mostly all of the buttons came off, spewing in every direction while various other hands were working diligently at his pants.

"Oi..." he frowned, "I thought you liked that shirt..." Sanji had been looking forward to seeing her walk around in it, too, but...ah, well. Too many things were happening at once for him to dwell on that. His foot came up as her hands unclasped the belt, undid the button and unzipped his zipper, and he had to arch his back to work his pants off. They hit the ground and he grinned. "Where are you? I miss you."

She smiled and crawled over to him, shrinking back most of the hands, but not all of them. Silently, she climbed on top of him, kissing his nose.

He sighed with relief, glad to have her back where he could find her. He took her hand and kissed the back, the palm, and grinned. "There you are."

She kissed the corner of his lips, then his chin, traveling kisses down his neck, over his shoulders and chest.

"I was . . . right there . . . the entire time . . ." she said, amidst her shower of kisses, while the two arms she had left growing out of the table were working at his boxers.

He arched to her lips, grinning and mumbling here and there about how he'd still missed her, even if she'd been there the whole time. "Missed you," he said, "missed _your_ hands, missed your lips, missed your voice..."

Sanji's boxers slid down at his ankles and he kicked those off. They landed in the sink-something Sanji wouldn't approve of in some better state of mind, but Robin kept him blindfolded and busy. His hand touched her lower back, slipped under her shirt while his other stayed in her hair, encouraging her.

She worked kisses back up to his ear, and started nibbling on his earlobe as she whispered. "Well then . . . I promise it won't happen again . . ." She then sat back and started unbuttoning her shirt, and the fact that he couldn't see worth a damn only made it that much more amusing to her.

He mumbled a bit more, hearing the faint rustle of cloth against skin, her undressing and he ached to see. Sanji's hands fumbled blindly, touched her hips by chance and captured her there. "Robin-chwaaan..." His hands ventured up and he unsnapped her bra. "Don't tease..."

She made sure her voice was dripping was shock. "Cook-san! Are you implying I'm a tease?" She pouted as she bloomed two more arms from the table and grabbed his hands, pinning them down beside his head. With that, she realized she had just answered her own question, but she didn't care in the least.

"I'm not implying, I'm telling you." he said, chin up to the ceiling. Still, he grinned and grinned and grinned, regardless of how anxious he was. "Nico Robin is a tease. I've learned something new today."

She slid her blouse off, and did away with her bra, tossing them elsewhere. "I am not . . . Not at all . . . That's an absolute fabrication," she said, smiling as she undid her belt.

"Liar," he accused, his eyes rolling behind his tie. He was starving for her touch, he needed her back on him, but pride was an obstacle he had to deal with. He didn't admit it-didn't say a word. But he ached, nonetheless.

Sex in the kitchen. He'd hate himself later for this.


	8. VIII

Sanji was becoming hopelessly restless. "Robin-chwan...please."

"Just a little longer . . ." she cooed, getting off him momentarily so she could hike her pants off. Once she had successfully undressed herself, she smiled, letting his hands free. "You can peek."

He had certainly been much more patient than she had originally thought he would be. That was definitely something.

Sanji grinned as he lifted a hand and pushed up a corner of his tie. As always, only one of his eyes were visible. His patience was wearing thin; he'd been seconds from starting an all out struggle with the hands she'd bloomed.

"But can I touch?" he asked as he sat up, took her hands and pulled her to him, taking her in a kiss. He'd missed the lips, missed those kisses too much. "Eh," he smiled against her lips, looking into her eyes. "Too late, already touching..."

Her breath was nearly taken away after that kiss. He kissed her like he hadn't kissed anyone in weeks, nonetheless minutes.

"Well then. Someone's hands are busier than mine," she said, breathless, as the kisses she spoke between were the same.

He chuckled and gathered her up in his arms, pulling her onto the table with him. Sanji laid back, his hand at the base of her neck, his other at her hip, guiding her to his hips.

All the while, still peeking at her through his tie.

"You know..." he said, just shy of pushing into her, "I'm in love with you—and I mean it."

She blinked. Like a goldfish.

If she had to count on one hand the number of people who said they loved her, she wouldn't need any fingers.

"You . . ." She opened her mouth, and closed it again, amplifying the whole goldfish appearance. "Really . . . ?" Was all she could manage to say, quietly, as if her voice was shot.

He nodded, sitting up a little to touch his lips to hers. "I mean it," Sanji said gravely. "I'm in love with you."

Sure, maybe she'd think it was puppy love, something he'd grow out of, some kind of fascination he'd lose. After all, this was Sanji. Self-proclaimed love cook. She didn't have to believe him. But him, in his young, pirate heart, believed earnestly that he was in love with her. "My love for you," Sanji said, smiling against her lips as he pulled the tie all the way off his eyes. "Is as vast at the sea itself."

Corny line he'd used more than a few times with her, but the way he said it was different. It was like a promise instead of a proclamation.

And this is precisely what she'd thought, at first. It had to be some kind of lustful enthrallment and nothing more. There was no way he could possibly . . . mean that.

She then began to solemnly look down and shake her head, to tell him not to say such things.

"Sanji-san, you shou-"

But then she looked into his eyes. Not just at them, in them. And she saw something there that she had never seen before. It was then that it hit her: he was being entirely sincere.

And sure, that last line was a bit . . . trite, but she could tell . . . he had meant that, too.

She began racking her brain, trying to figure out what to say. Oh, come on, she thought. When you love someone this isn't supposed to be difficult. It was then she realized she had just answered her own question.

Robin was in love with him.

Say it, she thought to herself. Stop being so afraid . . . He's not going to leave you, like your mother, like everyone else. You can trust this one . . .

She looked into those swirling pools of green and blue, and she kissed him. Passionately, fervently, taking the breath right out of him.

"I love you," she said, pulling away only slightly, their noses touching, anxious, wondering what he would say.

He had watched every emotion, every thought flicker across her features as she debated on what to say. He was holding his breath, watching her with young eyes, feeling like a boy, feeling like a little boy before this woman he was so captured with.

She kissed him, his mind swirled as he kept his hand behind her head, holding her gently. He was panting; she'd succeeded in taking the breath out of him. He broke out into a wide grin when she finally said it and laughed, laughed so loud a small part of him knew Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Chopper, Usopp probably heard him, but he didn't care.

She loved him.

"I love you," he said again pressing his lips to hers once, twice, speaking between, "I love you, I love you, I love you..."

She laughed as well, smiling bright through a shimmering film of tears. Happy, ecstatic tears. She kissed him, over his lips, his nose, his cheeks, chin, eyes and hair . . . at least a thousand of them. She couldn't remember ever feeling that happy. Come to think about it . . . she probably never had been, up until that moment.

"Robin-chwan," he smiled and touched his palm to her cheek, thumb brushing under her eyes, touched by the sheen of tears he saw in them. "I'm gonna do everything..." he said. "...Everything to make you happy."

She sniffled a bit, still smiling, glowing, as she felt his hand touch her cheek.

"You don't have to promise that . . ." she began, kissing him again, two, three, four, five times, before finally stopping briefly, smiling against his lips. "I'm quite sure you've already made me as happy as I'll ever be . . ."

"Robin-chwan," Sanji said, grinning as he looked into her eyes and stroked her back with his slender fingers. "It's only the beginning." And it was. Tufts of his hair was sticking in all directions, and if Robin had been wearing lipstick, it would've been smeared all over him by now. He looked a little dazzled, but he was laughing as he nuzzled his face into her neck and sighed softly, his breath warming her skin. "I'm gonna make you even happier than you are now-you'll see."

She only bit her lip and smiled at him in amazement. No one, absolutely no one, ever cared so much about how she felt, her happiness, her well-being . . . She honestly didn't know how to take it all.

She noticed that several of her tears were dripping off her cheeks and nose and onto his.

"I'm sorry . . ." she said, laughing softly at herself, wiping the tears away with a slightly shaky hand. She was quite embarrassed; there he was, smiling at her, perfectly as usual, and then there was Robin, blubbering like an idiot.

She kept apologizing, wiping the tears away only as new ones would appear.

"Robin-chwan..." Sanji murmured, his hands in her hair, lips over her cheek. He kissed her tears, brushed them away and kept on smiling. "Don't apologize..."

He sat up, took her up in his arms and hugged her close, rubbing her back gently. In fact, he was glad-glad to see that Robin was actually showing some emotion around him. Wasn't it just a few days ago, she'd done nothing but smile politely at him, thank him when the time called for it, and read?

"It's okay," he told her, closing his eyes. "It's okay."

She wrapped her arms behind his neck, hugging him back. As she did, she felt . . . small. Diminutive, even. As though she could fit in the palm of his hand. But then, that was Robin's mind . . . always avid with abstractions . . .

She sighed, burying her face in his neck as she laughed softly at herself.

"I feel ridiculous . . . crying like this . . ." She really did . . . she felt as though she'd ruined things. "The funny thing is . . . I hardly ever cry . . ."

She definitely felt small in his arms, and he just smiled, eyes closed, his chin on her shoulder. "I know, Robin-chwan." He knew that it was rare for her to cry-he knew that as well as Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Chopper. He knew.

As long as those weren't sad tears, Sanji thought, he was fine like this, stroking the small of her back, kissing her ear, her neck, whispering her loved her again and again. He was fine like this.

And they were. They were absolutely the happiest tears on that side of the world.

It was then she realized something.

"To some sort of . . . extent . . . I . . . ruined the moment, didn't I . . .? With all this . . . ridiculous blubbering . . ." she said, still a little discomfited about her tears. She hated crying . . . it made her feel somewhat . . . out of control. Something she certainly wasn't used to. Though every time he touched her, in that place in the small of her back, she felt a little more at ease, and a little less concerned about how embarrassed she may have been . . .

Sanji chuckled, his arms still around her, hand on her lower back-putting her at ease.

"Nah," he said, pulling back to flash her a reassuring smile. He kissed her slowly, savoring her lips. "You didn't ruin anything, Robin-chwan."

She looked at him, lips still parted from the kiss, and sighed in relief.

"Well, good . . . I was worried there for a moment," she said with another sniffle and a smile.

Sanji grinned boyishly, that obvious playful look springing to life in his eyes, and slowly laid back down, taking her with him.

"No need to," he said, tucking her hair behind her ear. "I still love you, and I'm not going anywhere."

She smiled, slowly sliding off of him and beside him, wrapping an arm over his chest as she began trickling her fingers.

Every time he said it, every time he told her he loved her, it took her a moment to register the fact that it was to her whom he was talking to. It was her he cared about. She was the one he wasn't going to leave.

She had lost far too many people in her life. And she was all too happy that Sanji wouldn't turn into one of them.

She was afraid to speak. She knew her voice would shake, the tears would pour . . .

No, Sanji wouldn't be lost. He was too strong, too stubborn, too close to the Straw Hats and Robin to let himself be taken from them or her.

He still kept his arms around her-like he was protecting her, some kind of reflex, he guessed. He didn't want her to go as much as she didn't want him to.

"You alright now, Robin-chwan?" he asked, turning his head to kiss her cheek.

She nodded, resting her cheek on his shoulder, as what she hoped were some of the last of her tears spilled onto him. "Yes, fine . . . I'm fine." Better than fine. Phenomenal. Extraordinary. Unparalleled happiness. More happiness and bliss than she could handle, it seemed.

He grinned like a lovesick fool, for that was what he was, and kissed her cheek again.

"Need something? A drink-water? Tea?"

She said nothing, only giving a soft laugh as she buried her face into his neck and shoulder. She had a feeling she could spend the rest of her life just how she was at that exact moment, and never need anything: no book, no primordial artifact of any kind, no article of food or drink, not one single thing. The only stipulation would be him.

Which, in hindsight, was quite a funny thing to think.


	9. Epilogue

" _Shit_!"

Robin pricked herself for what seemed like the twentieth time in the past five minutes. Sucking the end of her finger she took an exasperated breath before begrudgingly getting back to work. Honestly, when she had first committed herself to this task she really didn't think it would be so difficult. For crying out loud, this was sewing, not... well, for lack of a better occupation, rocket science. "Never again," she mumbled to herself, almost laughing as she began threading the needle through one of the buttons. Never again would she rip off another inch of clothing if she would be the one responsible for putting it back together. It seemed simple enough at the outset. Position buttons, thread through needle, needle through holes in the buttons, attach to fabric, repeat.

... She was so, horribly wrong.

 _Last one, last one,_ she thought to herself as she hastily threaded through the last button. (Though careful not to stab herself again)

"There!" Robin held up her work, more relieved than anything else that it was finally done. As she left her quarters for Sanji's, garment in hand, she surveyed it carefully on the way there. ...A few of the buttons didn't quite match up with the holes of their counterparts where they were supposed to be fastened, in fact, a few of the buttons didn't match at all, in particular a very gaudy looking black one she found on the floor of her room.

... Well, it would have to do.

She took a quick breath before folding it up again as she arrived at the men's quarters.

She knocked, twice, quietly.

Sanji's eyes felt heavy, but as soon as he heard that soft knock on the door, he was up and awake. Alert and ready. And for a fraction of a second, Sanji was gripped with the certain fear that he'd overslept, failed to serve his nakama breakfast with a smile and was now the picture of failure.

His eyes fluttered to the wristwatch he kept on him and he almost melted back into the sheets beneath a wave of mumbles and grumbles.

Oh well. Nothing soothed jumpy nerves more than a cigarette and a cup of coffee.

It was then Sanji heard another soft knock at his door.

_Oh, shit._

He rolled up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed and grabbed a beat up tank. It sounded like one of the girls. Zoro never knocked on his door; Luffy liked to barge right in without any sort of warning; Usopp wouldn't knock, he'd _whisper_ at him; Chopper would _rat-tat-tat_. So when he cracked his door open, he wasn't very surprised to see it was Robin. Instantly, he smiled and opened the door further, ushering her into his room. "Robin-chwan," he said, grinning. "What brings you here?"

He failed to notice what looked like a towel in her arms.

Robin couldn't remember the last time she was in the men's quarters, and she was reasonably sure she hadn't ever been inside Sanji's room before.

So of course the naturally curious and inquisitive Robin's eyes seemed to dance from wall to wall. While much cleaner than she expected, there was still no doubting that this was his domain. It smelled like a cocktail of every spice and herb and oil he used to cook, mixed with the everyday musk of Sanji that she could never quite figure out where exactly it came from-

 _Focus, focus,_ she told herself, attempting to silence her ever-vigorous train of thought. As she opened her mouth to speak she realized that this was going to be something of an awkward subject to bring up.

"Well I..." What was she supposed to say? _Oh hey, remember that time we were having sex in the kitchen and I suddenly turned insane with lust and ripped your shirt clean off? And then we made confessions of emphatic love? Yea... good times..._ The shirt. Let's just... talk about the shirt. "I made a ridiculously pathetic attempt at... well, fixing this... I looked everywhere to find those buttons, but some of them still came up missing, you see, so I had to... well find a few extra ones and... Goddamnit, here." With that she hastily thrust the shirt into his arms.

Sanji looked down at what he originally thought was some ratty towel and blinked, sifting through the cloth until he reached a button. And another button. They didn't match. He wrinkled his nose and looked up at Robin almost as if he was about to ask her just what the meaning of this was, and then he quickly shut his big mouth. The last thing he wanted to do was screw up a good thing, even if his woman happened to lack a talent with thread and needle.

Oh well. No one was perfect.

He offered her a lop-sided smile and set his new shirt on a hanger. It looked...sad. Sanji stared at it, a frown twitching on his lips. A moment beat by and he was suddenly very aware that Robin was probably looking for his opinion on it.

"Oh Robin-swan," he said suddenly. Dramatically. Happily. "It's perfect, like you," he turned, smiling at her. He toned down the theatrics and closed the distance between them to plant a kiss on her cheek. "I really appreciate it."

Robin saw all of it.

Every twitch, every flinch, every twinge of shock/disgust, every slight flare of the nostrils; Robin noticed them all.

Sometimes she wished she wasn't so apt at noticing and deciphering the tiniest of details.

Still, as haggard as her little project had turned out, it was still... well, her project. For him. She had spent an inordinate amount of time on that thing, and goddamnit she just... wanted him to like it, as juvenile (an utterly improbable) as that undoubtedly sounded.

Huh.

That was new.

She wasn't used to caring about ridiculous things like that, it even felt odd thinking of such trivialities to begin with. She shouldn't care about such things, and the fact that she was starting to was, to Robin, a testament to weakness.

What was he doing to her?

Still, she glanced at the shirt in his closet, then at Sanji, then at the shirt once more, and she couldn't help herself:

"You're not going to try it on?"

When she asked him whether he was going to try it on or not, Sanji's face paled. Only in the slightest. Of course, how could he _not_ try it on? That was the right thing to do, wasn't it? Somewhere in a book titled _Etiquette_.

"O-Of course, Robin-swan," Sanji said, nimbly unhooking the buttons and pulling the sleeves up. He buttoned his shirt down and tucked it in, wearing it like he normally wore his shirts and did a slow spin for Robin. He stopped in front of the mirror and swallowed, wondering how he was supposed to get away with this one. It was too tight around his right arm, too loose around his left and the collar was unbearably itchy. He cleared his throat and faced Robin. "What do you think?"

Sanji could go on and on about Robin and how wonderful, how smart, how clever, how beautiful she was. But he learned that Robin, as powerful and graceful as she was, couldn't quite sew.

Honestly, she wasn't expecting him to actually do it. As thoughtful and well-meaning as he was, she never expected him to actually agree to putting it on, without a word in protest.

It warmed her deeply.

She bit her lip as she watched him put on her abomination, and, after all this time, it still amazed her that there was someone who was willing to be so selfless and kind to her. It was only a shirt, true. But to Robin, there was much more behind it. Slowly, she closed the distance between the two of them, and touched her nose with his. Ignoring the question, she spoke, "Thank you." Her tone was quiet, deliberate, and soft. There was a pause, a silence that was anything but uncomfortable. And she smiled. "... You can drop your impeccable etiquette, dear. I'm aware of what an abomination that thing is," she added finally as she laughed.

He smiled then, pooling in relief, and slipped his arm around her. The shirt was itching something fierce on his neck, but when Robin's warm body was in front of him, her nose pressed to his, there was hardly any attention left for how uncomfortable he was.

Sanji pressed his lips to hers, his tongue slipped briefly over her lower lip, tasting her.

He pulled back with an easy smile, his hand fanned over her lower back, rubbing gently. "Thank _you_ ," he insisted, his chin angled down, his eyes bearing into hers. "Would you mind, Robin-chwan?" he held up his hands as if he were helpless. "Undressing me?"


End file.
